Indonesian police have arrested the alleged operations chief of the regional terror network Jemaah Islamiyah.
The group has been blamed for the October 12th bombings on the resort island of Bali.
The arrest of alleged mastermind Mukhlas, alias Ali Gufron, is seen as a major blow to the group. He was arrested close to the central Javanese town of Solowhich.
General Erwin Mappaseng, the national chief of police detectivessaid Mukhlas was arrested with eight other people, including his wife. He did not say whether these people had any links with the Bali bombings.
Last week, Indonesian police said Mukhlas was believed to have replaced Riduan Isamuddin, also known as Hambali, as operations chief of Jemaah Islamiyah. They said that Hambali was becoming too well known and had been forced to go into hiding.
Police have not named Mukhlas as a suspect in the Bali blasts.
Mukhlas has been identified as a brother of Amrozi, who officers arrested last month in connection with the bombings. Amrozi confessed to owning the car used in the attack and buying materials used in the blasts, officers said.
AP