PRIME Minister John Howard today refused to comment on intelligence reports that terror group Jemaah Islamiah (JI) was planning to launch an assassination campaign targeting Australian and other diplomats in Indonesia.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,9811140%255E1702,00.html

Mr Howard said being an Australian diplomat in some parts of the world remained a hazardous job.

He said there was nothing particularly new about the possibility of this kind of threat against Australians and Australia continued to issue travel warnings about the terror risk.

"I am not going to confirm specific threats at this stage. I have sought more information about that. I haven't as of now been given that information," he said on Melbourne radio 3AW.

Western security agencies fear JI has changed tactics from bombs to targeted killings of Australian and other western diplomats, politicians and business figures.

The new fears follow death threats made last month to Westerners at a Canadian-owned gold mine in Sulawesi, and a spate of sniper killings of police and civilians in Ambon.

"It makes sense. If you can pop off a Western ambassador or maybe the Indonesian head of counter-terrorism, then it's a win-win for JI," one senior Western diplomat in Indonesia said yesterday.