Malaysia targets terror websites

By Jonathan Kent
BBC, Kuala Lumpur

Berg's body was found on a road near Baghdad

The Malaysian Prime Minister says his government will act to shut down radical Islamic websites hosted by internet businesses in his country.

His announcement follows the closure of the site that first showed video of American contractor Nick Berg being beheaded in Iraq.

The site leased computer server space from a Malaysian web hosting company, Acme Commerce.

Acme Commerce says it only became aware that footage of Nick Berg's murder was being stored on its computers when connections to hundreds of its other servers were jammed by people wanting to see the film.

It moved immediately to close the site.

However it has since emerged that Acme's computers provided space for other sites linked to al-Qaeda, Hamas and supporters of Chechen rebels.

The company says it has now closed those as well and will check through its servers and remove any similar material found.

Acme will have the support of Malaysia's Prime Minister, Abdullah Badawi.

He says the government will not allow any web page or company that operates on behalf of terrorists.

The internet remains the freest source of information in a country where most media are tightly controlled or subjected to censorship.

Malaysia's cyber laws state that they are not designed to censor but do allow for action against sites that are indecent, obscene, that incite hatred or launch personal attacks against individuals.

Malaysia was an early convert to the internet and its hands off approach was designed to lure IT companies to the country.