ABSTRACT
Tourist destinations had little security and were simple to infiltrate, even with bulky explosives that had to be concealed in vehicles or in backpacks, so at Hambali's orders, Jemaah Islamiyah terrorists linked to the cleric Bashir and probably funded by Osama bin Laden, struck on the Indonesian resort island of Bali, an artistic enclave with a predominantly Hindu culture, killing more than 200 people in a late-night attack on Kuta village discotheques with two bombs, one concealed in a vehicle and the other carried by a suicide bomber. Singapore, by virtue of its excellent security, had been spared a catastrophe like that on Bali. It has kept the terrorists at bay, although there is little doubt that Jemaah Islamiyah's leaders would dearly love to wreak havoc on the prosperous city-state if they could get off an attack, for symbolic as well as for strategic reasons.
