NEWS for Friday-Saturday-Sunday, July 28-30, 2000
INDONESIA PRESIDENT WARNS GENERAL FUNDING JIHAD AGAINST CHRISTIANS
JAKARTA (CWNews.com)
Indonesian President Abdurrahman
Wahid has questioned an army general over allegations the
soldier is funding a "holy war" or jihad by Muslim
extremist militias against Christians in the Moluccas
region, according to the Berita Buana daily on Thursday.
The newspaper quoted Wahid as saying he summoned the
lieutenant general after hearing reports of the general's
involvement in the violence. He reportedly told him to
either "continue funding the militants and quit the
military" or, if he wants to remain in the military, "leave
the militants."
Thousands of people have been killed in fighting in the
Moluccas, a majority Christian region in Indonesia, the
world's most populous Muslim nation, since fighting between
rival gangs began 20 months ago. In recent months, organized
militias of Muslim holy war fighters have entered the region
with more sophisticated weapons and embarked on a campaign
to eradicate Christians. The military has been accused of
assisting the militias.
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