Thai Muslims Held Over Terror Plot by Phakamat Rattanakorn 30-6-2003 Thailand detained three Thai Muslims they suspected were planning to attack western embassies and tourist spots in the country. The men were detained in southern Narathiwat province bordering Malaysia and were linked with regional terrorism network Jemaah Islamiah (JI). One report linked their arrests with that of a Singaporean man arrested in May 2003 in Bangkok and concurrently in detention in Singapore. Australia and New Zealand in May had advised against non-essential travel to Thailand, warning that the country was at risk of attack by Islamic militants. The Thai suspects 'admitted to having JI links'. Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra admitted to the presence of JI members in the country, but said they were not active. According to Thai police, the three men arrested on June 10 were planning to carry out attacks in the tourist attractions of Pattaya and Phuket, in addition to foreign embassies in the capital Bangkok. A police official said that the three men--a religious teacher, his son, and a medical doctor--were part of a cell of at least five, and that the others were being searched for. The Singapore Government said that the man it was holding--named as Arifin bin Ali, alias John Wong Ah Hung--was detained following a tip from the island state's intelligence agency. A government statement said the man's targets were five foreign embassies in Bangkok, including the Singapore mission. Thai suspects 'admit JI links' The two Thai Muslims arrested on suspicion of planning to attack western embassies and tourist spots confessed that they belonged to regional terror group JI, according to Thai police. A senior policeman said that two men, a religious teacher and his son, had admitted to the plot, and to membership of JI. A third man, a medical doctor who was also being held, admitted to forging passports for the group, police said. JI was accused of carrying out the October 2002 bombing on the Indonesian holiday island of Bali which killed more than 200 people. Australia and New Zealand in May advised against non-essential travel to Thailand, warning that the country was at risk of attack by Islamic militants. The US had been pressing Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra to take more action against Islamic groups it believed were using Thailand to plan attacks on western targets. Mr Thaksin had long insisted there was no evidence of militant activity in his country, but the latest arrests seemed to suggest that the Thai government is taking the threat of terrorism more seriously. "We have evidence to prove that they are members of (Jemaah Islamiah) and that they were plotting to conduct violence in the country," said Major General Chumpon Manmai of the most recent arrests. Police accused the men of planning to carry out attacks in the tourist resorts of Pattaya and Phuket, as well as foreign embassies in Bangkok. "I assume that the targets were those which have a high concentration of foreign tourists," foreign ministry spokesman Hasak Puangketkaew said. Local residents in southern Thailand were puzzled by the arrests, particularly that of Doctor Waehamadi Wae-dao, who was a respected community leader. People believed the doctor's detention had more to do with long-running friction between the Muslim community and the security forces as he had been a critic of the police. Singapore detention Officials in Singapore on June 10 announced that an alleged senior member of JI was arrested in Bangkok in May and was in detention in Singapore. The Singapore Government said the suspect, Arifin bin Ali, alias John Wong Ah Hung, was detained following a tip from the island state's intelligence agency. A government statement said the man's targets were five foreign embassies in Bangkok, including the Singapore mission.