Overview
Huda bin Abdul Haq was the Indonesian-born operations chief of the al-Qaeda-linked terrorist organization Jemaah Islamiyah (JI). He was known for masterminding the October 2002 Bali bombings, which left 202 people dead and more than 200 others injured.Agence France-Presse, “Mastermind Muklas sentenced to firing squad,” Sydney Morning Herald, October 2, 2003, http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/10/02/1064988317681.html;
U.S. victims of 2002 Bali bombing remembered as ceremonies held worldwide to mark 10th anniversary,” Daily Mail (London), October 12, 2012, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2216949/U-S-victims-2002-Bali-bombing-remembered-ceremonies-held-worldwide-mark-10th-anniversary.html. Bin Abdul Haq was arrested by Balinese police in December 2002, and found guilty of facilitating the attacks the following October.Kelly McEvers, “The Terrorist’s Wife,” Slate, November 1, 2005, http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/dispatches/features/2005/the_terrorists_wife/visiting_the_space_where_the_sari_club_used_to_be.html;
Agence France-Presse, “Mastermind Muklas sentenced to firing squad,” Sydney Morning Herald, October 2, 2003, http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/10/02/1064988317681.html. His two younger brothers and co-conspirators, Amrozi bin Nurhasyim and Ali Imron, were arrested in November 2002 and January 2003, respectively.“Profile: Mukhlas,” BBC News, November 8, 2008, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/2542863.stm. Bin Abdul Haq, bin Nurasyim, and a third conspirator, Imam Samudra, were executed on November 8, 2008, while the youngest brother, Ali Imron, continues to serve a life sentence in Indonesian prison.Sadie Gray, “Three Bali bombers executed by firing squad at midnight,” Independent (London), November 9, 2008, http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/australasia/three-bali-bombers-executed-by-firing-squad-at-midnight-1003970.html.
Bin Abdul Haq is believed to have studied at an Islamic boarding school in Solo, Central Java—one of many schools founded and formerly run by JI leader Abu Bakar Bashir.“Profile: Mukhlas,” BBC News, November 8, 2008, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/2542863.stm. As with Bashir and other JI militants, bin Abdul Haq’s jihadist activity can be traced back to the Afghan-Soviet war in the 1980s—when bin Abdul Haq traveled to Pakistan to receive combat training before traveling to Afghanistan to fight alongside the jihadists. It was during his time in Afghanistan that bin Abdul Haq claims to have met al-Qaeda co-founder Osama bin Laden.Kelly McEvers, “The Terrorist’s Wife,” Slate, November 1, 2005, http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/dispatches/features/2005/the_terrorists_wife/how_paridah_met_mukhlas.html;
“Profile: Mukhlas,” BBC News, November 8, 2008, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/2542863.stm.>
In 1990, bin Abdul Haq left Afghanistan and traveled to Malaysia, where he married the daughter of an associate of JI founders Abu Bakar Bashir and Abdullah Sungkar.Kelly McEvers, “The Terrorist’s Wife,” Slate, November 1, 2005, http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/dispatches/features/2005/the_terrorists_wife/how_paridah_met_mukhlas.html. In Malaysia, bin Abdul Haq established an Islamic boarding school of his own, modeled after Bashir and Sungkar’s in Indonesia. He traveled with other JI extremists throughout Southeast Asia, proselytizing and training aspiring jihadists.Kelly McEvers, “The Terrorist’s Wife,” Slate, November 1, 2005, http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/dispatches/features/2005/the_terrorists_wife/how_paridah_met_mukhlas.html.
In February of 2002, bin Abul Haq met with JI leaders in Thailand to begin planning a largescale attack.“Profile: Mukhlas,” BBC News, November 8, 2008, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/2542863.stm;
Kelly McEvers, “The Terrorist’s Wife,” Slate, November 1, 2005, http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/dispatches/features/2005/the_terrorists_wife/how_paridah_met_mukhlas.html. The plotters discussed attacking “soft targets” such as tourist destinations, ultimately deciding to target nightclubs.“Profile: Mukhlas,” BBC News, November 8, 2008, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/2542863.stm;
Kelly McEvers, “The Terrorist’s Wife,” Slate, November 1, 2005, http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/dispatches/features/2005/the_terrorists_wife/visiting_the_space_where_the_sari_club_used_to_be.html. In April 2002, bin Abdul Haq returned to Indonesia and convened another meeting with JI leaders, in which the plotters decided to attack Bali, the Hindu-majority island in south Indonesia. Witnesses testified during Abdul Haq’s trial that he had traveled to Bali in May 2002.“Profile: Mukhlas,” BBC News, November 8, 2008, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/2542863.stm;
Kelly McEvers, “The Terrorist’s Wife,” Slate, November 1, 2005, http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/dispatches/features/2005/the_terrorists_wife/visiting_the_space_where_the_sari_club_used_to_be.html.
On October 12, 2002, two bombs exploded in Kuta, a popular tourist district in Bali, killing 202 people and injuring more than 200 others.Agence France-Presse, “Mastermind Muklas sentenced to firing squad,” Sydney Morning Herald, October 2, 2003, http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/10/02/1064988317681.html;
U.S. victims of 2002 Bali bombing remembered as ceremonies held worldwide to mark 10th anniversary,” Daily Mail (London), October 12, 2012, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2216949/U-S-victims-2002-Bali-bombing-remembered-ceremonies-held-worldwide-mark-10th-anniversary.html. The planners had recruited two young Indonesian boys to detonate the bombs, one of whom detonated his suicide vest in Paddy’s Irish Bar while the other set off explosives in a van outside of Sari Club.“Timeline: Bali bomb trials,” BBC News, November 8, 2008, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3126241.stm;
Kelly McEvers, “The Terrorist’s Wife,” Slate, November 1, 2005, http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/dispatches/features/2005/the_terrorists_wife/how_paridah_met_mukhlas.html. A third, smaller bomb was remotely detonated near the U.S. Consulate in Bali, though no one was injured.“Timeline: Bali bomb trials,” BBC News, November 8, 2008, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3126241.stm.
Balinese police traced the van used in the attack to bin Abdul Haq’s brother, bin Nurhasyim, and launched an investigation that led them to the brothers’ hometown in Central Java. Bin Abdul Haq was arrested on December 4, 2003.“Timeline: Bali bomb trials,” BBC News, November 8, 2008, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3126241.stm;
Kelly McEvers, “The Terrorist’s Wife,” Slate, November 1, 2005, http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/dispatches/features/2005/the_terrorists_wife/visiting_the_space_where_the_sari_club_used_to_be.html. During his trial between June and October of 2003, bin Abdul Haq reportedly showed no remorse for the bombings. Instead, he exploited court appearances as a platform to decry the United States, calling U.S. President George W. Bush a “terrorist.”Agence France-Presse, “Mastermind Muklas sentenced to firing squad,” Sydney Morning Herald, October 2, 2003, http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/10/02/1064988317681.html. Bin Abdul Haq said that the attacks were in retaliation for alleged crimes perpetrated by the United States and other Western countries operating in the Middle East.Sadie Gray, “Three Bali bombers executed by firing squad at midnight,” Independent (London), November 9, 2008, http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/australasia/three-bali-bombers-executed-by-firing-squad-at-midnight-1003970.html. Bin Abdul Haq testified to being JI’s operations chief and revealed that he had fought alongside bin Laden in Afghanistan in the 1980s.Agence France-Presse, “Mastermind Muklas sentenced to firing squad,” Sydney Morning Herald, October 2, 2003, http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/10/02/1064988317681.html. According to fellow inmates, bin Abdul Haq continued to preach—and even delivered a sermon via phone to a congregation in Sulawesi, Indonesia—while in detention in the high-security prison complex on Nusakambangan Island.“Profile: Mukhlas,” BBC News, November 8, 2008, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/2542863.stm.
On October 2, 2003, bin Abdul Haq was convicted on several charges, including terrorism-related charges and illegal possession of explosives. He received the death penalty, typically carried out by firing squad in Indonesia.Agence France-Presse, “Mastermind Muklas sentenced to firing squad,” Sydney Morning Herald, October 2, 2003, http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/10/02/1064988317681.html. His brother bin Nurhasyim was convicted and sentenced to death for purchasing explosives and a van used in the bombings, while the youngest brother Imron received a life sentence for helping assemble bombs and driving the van.“Profile: Mukhlas,” BBC News, November 8, 2008, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/2542863.stm. From the time of bin Abdul Haq’s sentencing to November 3, 2008, his lawyer filed a series of appeals to challenge the verdict and the method of execution, but they were repeatedly denied.“Timeline: Bali bomb trials,” BBC News, November 8, 2008, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3126241.stm. On November 8, 2008, bin Abul Haq, his brother bin Nurhasyim, and Samudra were executed by firing squad on the prison island of Nusakambangan.Sadie Gray, “Three Bali bombers executed by firing squad at midnight,” Independent (London), November 9, 2008, http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/australasia/three-bali-bombers-executed-by-firing-squad-at-midnight-1003970.html.
Associated Groups
- Extremist entity
- Jemaah Islamiyah (JI)
- Read Threat Report
- Type(s) of Organization:
- Insurgent, non-state actor, religious, terrorist, transnational, violent
- Ideologies and Affiliations:
- Islamist, jihadist, Qutbist, Salafist, Sunni, takfiri
- Position(s):
- Former Operations Chief and mastermind of the 2002 Bali bombings
JI is a jihadist group in Southeast Asia that seeks to establish a caliphate in the region through violent means. The group is led by its co-founder, Abu Bakar Bashir, who pledged loyalty to ISIS in July 2014.
History
United Nations
The United Nations added “Huda bin Abdul Haq” to its Al-Qaida Sanctions List on September 9, 2003.“Security Council Al-Qaida and Taliban Sanctions Committee Approves Deletion of Three Entries from Consolidated List,” U.N. Security Council, April 19, 2010, http://www.un.org/press/en/2010/sc9909.doc.htm. Following his death, the United Nations delisted “Huda bin Abdul Haq” from the Al-Qaida and Taliban Consolidated List on April 19, 2010, pursuant to paragraph 25 of Security Council resolution 1822 (2008).“Security Council Al-Qaida and Taliban Sanctions Committee Approves Deletion of Three Entries from Consolidated List,” U.N. Security Council, April 19, 2010, http://www.un.org/press/en/2010/sc9909.doc.htm.
United States
The U.S. Department of Treasury designated “Huda bin Abdul Haq” as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT).“Snow Announces Designation of 10 Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) Terrorists,” U.S. Department of Treasury, September 5, 2003, https://www.treasury.gov/press-center/press-releases/Pages/js700.aspx. Following his death, the U.S. Department of Treasury deleted “Huda bin Abdul Haq” from the Office of Foreign Assets Control’s Specially Designated Nationals List on May 6, 2010.“Recent OFAC Actions,” U.S. Department of Treasury, May 6, 2010, https://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/sanctions/OFAC-Enforcement/Pages/20100506.aspx.
Daily Dose
Extremists: Their Words. Their Actions.
In Their Own Words:
We reiterate once again that the brigades will directly target US bases across the region in case the US enemy commits a folly and decides to strike our resistance fighters and their camps [in Iraq].
Mar. 2023