Men admit beheading schoolgirls

2006-05-10 08:10

Jakarta - Seven suspected Islamic terrorists have confessed to beheading three Christian schoolgirls on Indonesia's Sulawesi Island, police said on Wednesday.

The seven detained suspects confessed under questioning that they planned and carried out the October 29 beheadings in the Sulawesi town of Poso, police chief Lieutenant Colonel Rudi Sufahriadi told The Associated Press.

Another girl was wounded but spared by the assailants, he said.

Two of the suspects also say they have ties to Noordin Top, regarded as a key leader of the al-Qaeda-linked group Jemaah Islamiyah, according to Central Sulawesi police chief Brigadier General Oegroseno.

Indonesia has arrested scores of militants belonging to the al-Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiyah terror group in recent years.

Jemaah Islamiyah has been blamed for a series of suicide bombings in Indonesia in recent years, including two separate strikes on the tourist island of Bali.

Poso, a coastal town, is some 1 600km northeast of Jakarta. It was the scene of clashes between Muslims and Christians in 1999-2002 that claimed more than 1 000 lives.

Sporadic bombings and attacks, mostly targeting the Christian community, have continued and police suspect Jemaah Islamiyah involvement.

- AP