Indonesians Nab Alleged Terror Chief; Clinton Says Party Failed Midterm Test over Security; Vendors Complete Tougher Firewall Tests; IKEA Received Bomb Threat

Indonesians Nab Alleged Terror Chief

Indonesia has arrested Mukhlas, alias Ali Gufron, the alleged operations chief of an al-Qaida-linked terror group blamed for bombings on the resort island of Bali, the nation’s police chief said today, according to an AP report on the Washington Post website. Mukhlas was taken into custody Tuesday in Java, along with eight other people, including his wife, police chief Gen. Erwin Mapaseng told reporters. Last week, police said Mukhlas was believed to have replaced Riduan Isamuddin, aka Hambali, who has been described as al-Qaida’s point man in Southeast Asia. At least 28 people have been arrested in connection with the blasts. Clinton Says Party Failed Midterm Test over Security New York Times today reports that former President Bill Clinton says that the Democratic Party lost the midterm elections because its candidates had failed to offer a convincing case that the party could manage national security during dangerous times. Clinton, in a speech to the Democratic Leadership Council yesterday, brushed aside the argument by some Democrats that the party needed to return to its liberal roots to regain power. The Times quoted him as saying, “We were missing in action on national security and we had no positive plan for America’s domestic future.” He added: “When people are feeling insecure, they’d rather have someone who is strong and wrong rather than somebody who is weak and right.”

The

Vendors Complete Tougher Firewall TestsThe Register today, ICSA Labs, which provides one of the most important certifications firewall vendors strive for, said yesterday it has completed the first wave of tests of product against version 4.0 of its certification criteria. For the first time, ICSA has split its certification into three categories and is awarding three different certification logos—for residential, small and medium business, and corporate firewall products. The Register lists the first products to pass the tests and explains the new criteria.

According to a story in

IKEA Received Bomb ThreatCNN.com today. Two policemen were injured while defusing one of two bombs found in outlets in Amsterdam and near Rotterdam. Dutch officials were quick to rule out a potential terror link, but it was not immediately clear who might be responsible. CNN reports that in an apparently unrelated incident, the offices of the national Dutch news agency ANP were evacuated on Wednesday after a bomb threat, police said. No explosives were immediately found.

Furniture retailer Ikea says its Dutch subsidiary received a letter with a bomb threat yesterday and today police found explosives in two of its outlets, according to a story on