Indonesia has reduced the sentences of 84 convicted terrorists, including an al-Qaeda-linked extremist on a US blacklist, as part of its Independence Day celebrations.
Mohammed Jibril Abdurahman, 26, known on extremist websites as the "Prince of Jihad", had his five-year sentence reduced by two months for "good behaviour", justice ministry spokesman Akbar Hadi Prabowo said today.
The US Treasury on Tuesday placed financial sanctions against Abdurahman and three other Indonesians for their leading roles in violent groups such as Jemaah Islamiah, blamed for deadly bombings across South-East Asia.
The Treasury said Abdurahman was a channel for funds intended for Jemaah Islamiah attacks and underwent military training in Pakistan, "where he met with al-Qaeda and Taliban personnel".
The US sanctions list also featured Umar Patek, an alleged coordinator of the 2002 Bali bombings who was arrested in Pakistan this year, and Abdul Rahim Baasyir, Jemaah Islamiah's "main contact" with al-Qaeda.
"These three men have demonstrated their commitment to violence," Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence David Cohen said.
The sanctions, intended to disrupt access to the international financial system, forbid any American from engaging in business transactions with the men and freeze any assets they may have on US territory.
The Indonesian justice ministry spokesman said sentence reductions were routine for well-behaved prisoners, regardless of the threat they may pose to society. Of 135 convicted terrorists in Indonesian jails, 84 had received reductions.
"Our law stipulates that a sentence cut must be granted to prisoners who never violate prison regulations," Prabowo said.
Abdurahman, a publisher of jihadist material and well-known Islamist blogger, was sentenced to five years in jail in June last year for concealing information about suicide attacks on two Jakarta hotels.
Police said he met with and offered funding to the plotters of the bombings of the Marriott and Ritz-Carlton that killed seven people on July 17, 2009.
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