The 18 suspected Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) members, arrested in August, are being held under the tough Internal Security Act (ISA) and have not been produced in open court.

In the tight security and secrecy surrounding the arrests, the announcement of the review was only released by the home affairs ministry three weeks after they appeared in the Supreme Court chambers of Justice Chao Hick Tin.

The 18 are accused of plotting to cripple crucial targets in Singapore as part of a plan to overthrow the established order in Southeast Asia and create an Islamic state.

The JI is a Southeast Asian militant organisation which authorities say is allied to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda, and is suspected of mounting last month's Bali blast, which killed more than 190 people.

Only eight of the 18 detained for "terrorism-related activities" chose to make representations to the three-member ISA Advisory Board, headed by Chao, which sat from November 6-8, the ministry said in a statement.

Four made oral representations, including one who was represented by a lawyer, and four presented written evidence.

Suspects held under the ISA must have their cases reviewed within three months of being detained, and then at intervals of no more than 12 months.

Following the review, the advisory board submits its recommendations to President S.R. Nathan who will then "direct the minister for home affairs on the detention or release of the detained person."

When the cases of 13 other JI suspects were reviewed in February, the advisory board produced a report saying they admitted all the terrorist charges against them.

They were accused of planning to attack US and other Western targets in Singapore and buying 17 tonnes of ammonium nitrate to make huge truck bombs.

A video tape of likely targets was found in a house in Singapore with a copy found in the Afghanistan home of an al-Qaeda leader.

Several of the total 31 JI members held in Singapore are said to have trained at al-Qaeda camps in Afghanistan.

The second batch of 18 were detained in August, but the government delayed releasing news of their arrest for a month.

Their bombing targets are said to have included vital water supply pipelines from Malaysia, Changi airport, Jurong Island where Singapore's oil refineries and petrochemical plants are based, and the ministry of defence headquarters.

Other targets included a US vessel at the Changi naval base, and a pub which they belived to be frequented by US military personnel.

It was to be the first step towards their ultimate goal of creating an Islamic state covering Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, the southern Philippines island of Mindanao and Brunei, the government said.

The government tied the terrorist plans to JI's regional leader, Indonesian Riduan Isamuddin, alias Hambali, who is also suspected of masterminding the Bali bombing.

                                                            Home