BALI, 29 July 2003 - Indonesian police have asked Malaysia to arrest a senior Aceh rebel leader who reportedly escaped to the neighboring nation after a massive military offensive in the province, a top officer said on Tuesday. The whereabouts of Sofyan Daud, a key rebel leader and spokesman for the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), are still unclear. However, Indonesian police are checking media reports that he was in Malaysia after Daud spoke to several local newspapers by satellite phone.
"We have an extradition agreement with Malaysia," Gen. Da'i Bachtiar told a security seminar in Bali. "We have sent our officers (there) to investigate the matter." Indonesia launched its latest offensive against rebels in Aceh on May 19 after a five-month cease-fire broke down. The military has killed more than 500 people it claims were insurgents, but admitsthat rebel leaders have so far escaped the crackdown.
Neighboring Malaysia has a porous coastal border with Aceh, enabling smugglers and rebels to enter illegally.

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