Bali bomb 'mastermind' held

Samudra is alleged to have chosen the target

The alleged mastermind of the bombings which left nearly 200 people dead in Bali has been arrested, Indonesian police say.

Imam Samudra was apprehended at the port of Merak in West Java on Thursday evening, as he was about to board a ferry for Sumatra.

	Imam Samudra Indonesian, 35 Has six aliases Computer expert May have learned bomb-making in Afghanistan See also: Indonesia's most wanted man

His arrest appears to be the most significant breakthrough so far in the investigation.

The BBC's Jonathan Head in Jakarta says it will now be of primary importance to the police to establish Mr Samudra's exact role in the bombing.

Police are reported to have been tipped off as to his whereabouts by two men who police picked up near the port on Tuesday - the pair are believed to have been Mr Samudra's guards.

The authorities want to move Mr Samudra to Bali next week, but he is currently still being held in Merak.

Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer praised co-operation between Indonesian and Australian police in the case as "outstanding".

"We're delighted with the progress that the Indonesian police have been making," he said.

Most of the people killed in the bombing were Australian tourists.

Five arrests

On Sunday, police identified the 35-year old computer expert from West Java as the main planner in the group that carried out the attacks, in the Kuta nightclub area.

Indonesian national police chief General Da'i Bachtiar said Mr Samudra, an alleged Afghan-trained militant, went quietly into custody.

"There was no resistance, there was no weapon," General Bachtiar said.

He identified the two men arrested on Tuesday as Rauf and Yudi. A third man has also been detained.

Neither of them are listed as any of six suspects named by the authorities on Sunday.

However, Reuters news agency quoted General Pastika as saying they were "suspected of involvement" in the attack.

This would bring the number of people arrested in connection with the bombing to five.

Until now, the authorities only had one suspect in custody, a man known as Amrozi, who was arrested on 5 November.

'Militant ties'

Police say Amrozi has admitted to owning the van used to bomb the Sari Club in Kuta, and to buying explosives.

He is alleged to have met Mr Samudra in Bali, six days before the bombing on 12 October.

Mr Samudra chose the target and led planning meetings, according to police. He is alleged to have links with Islamic militant group Jemaah Islamiah (JI).

He is believed to have learned bomb making in Afghanistan and is also suspected of involvement in a string of church bombings across Indonesia in 2000.

Investigators have not linked the bombing to JI, or to the al-Qaeda network with which it is thought to be affiliated.

Correspondents say that Mr Samudra, if he is persuaded to co-operate with police, could supply vital information on JI and other militant groups.