Cleric Spurns Release From Prison in Hostage Exchange

An Islamic militant group claiming to have kidnapped two Indonesian women in Iraq demanded the release of an imprisoned Indonesian cleric, but the cleric refused Saturday to be freed in an exchange, saying hostage-taking is not in keeping with Islam.

Cleric Abu Bakar Bashir, who U.S. officials says is a terrorist mastermind, has been held on charges of heading an Al Qaeda-linked group. He was arrested three weeks after the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 people.

On Saturday, the preacher castigated the captors as un- Islamic and said he would not be part of any exchange.

“I cannot justify this kidnapping. I demand that they be freed, as Islam does not condone taking hostages of Muslim sisters and brothers,” Bashir said. His voice was recorded, and a copy of the recording was smuggled out.

It was unclear when the two Indonesian women were seized, but they appeared Thursday on the Al Jazeera satellite channel in a tape showing 10 hostages allegedly taken by a group calling itself the Islamic Army in Iraq.

On Saturday, Al Jazeera said it had received a statement from the group demanding that Bashir be released.

Bashir’s attorney, Mohammed Assegaf, said the cleric wanted to fight the charges against him in court.

“Even if he is released because of this, he will walk right back into prison,” Assegaf said.

Assegaf suggested that the demand could be a “game by the Americans to smear Bashir’s name. They want to create an impression that there is a link between Abu Bakar Bashir and the group in Iraq.”

U.S. Embassy officials could not be reached for comment.

Indonesian authorities have dropped plans to charge Bashir in the Bali bombings, but say they now plan to charge him with heading Jemaah Islamiah, and for the JW Marriott Hotel bombing in Jakarta last year, in which 12 people were killed.