Jakarta holds key to keeping S-E Asia safe in war on terror

AS the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) destabilises the Middle East, South-east Asia is likely to become the second front of the war on terror again. More than any other country, Indonesia will play a key role in keeping the region safe.

South-east Asia rose to unwanted prominence after Al-Qaeda shook the security landscape with the 9/11 attacks in the United States. Al-Qaeda's South-east Asian affiliate, Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), imported the convulsions into this region with the Bali and Jakarta Marriott bombings in 2002 and 2003, incidents which were instrumental in turning South-east Asia into the second front.

A recurrence is probable now as the ISIS attracts recruits and sympathisers in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. It has been estimated that Indonesia provided most of the 200 or so South-east Asian jihadists who have joined the insurgent group. Worryingly, there is even a local group, the Malay Archipelago Units for the Islamic State, which supports ISIS; it could be the harbinger of a refashioned and revitalised JI.