Bali Bomb

 

A militant was jailed for 15 years over 2002 Bali bombings.

This file photo was taken on December 16, 2020

 

This photo shows police escorting Zulkarnaen

 

He is  a senior leader of the Al-Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiyah (JI).

 

He has been on the run for his alleged role in the 2002 Bali bombings

 

Indonesian court sentenced an Islamist militant to 15 years in prison over his role in the 2002 bombings.

 

The bombings killed 202 people on the resort island of Bali.

 

 (AFP/Fajrin Rah

The blasts came just over a year after the 9/11 attacks on the United States.

 

The blasts ripped through two bars packed with foreign tourists.

 

The blasts remain the deadliest militant assault in Indonesia's history.

 

Zulkarnaen, is a high-ranking member of the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) militant group

 

He was arrested in December 2020 after spending nearly 18 years at large.

 

He was on trial for the Bali bombings, as well as several other attacks carried out by the special unit under his command.

 

The defendant is also known as Aris Sumarsono.

 

He was a former military commander in Jemaah Islamiah (JI), a Southeast Asian jihadist network with ties to al Qaeda.

 

The 58-year-old had been on the run for almost two decades after being named a suspect in the Bali attacks.

 

He "is guilty of committing terrorism and is sentenced to 15 years behind bars".

 

, said the presiding judge at East Jakarta District Court.

 

Prosecutors had said Zulkarnaen set up the special JI cell

 

and described him as a "key asset" for the group because of his experience as a trainer at militant camps in Afghanistan and the Philippines.

 

 

During the trial, Zulkarnaen denied involvement in the Bali bombings,

 

but admitted that they were carried out by his team.

 

But the judges were not convinced.

 

"The fact that he was the head of the team and agreed on a plan in Bali... it could be considered agreeing to the plan," the presiding judge said.