Indonesia: Book Bombs and a Challenged President

Recent announcements by the Indonesian National Police and the office of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono suggest rising challenges for Jakarta posed by hard-line Islamists. Evidence released March 23 on book bombs discovered last week links them to former members of Jemaah Islamiyah, a militant group in decline. At the same time, disparate Islamist groups in Indonesia are committing acts of violence at the local level against what they see as affronts to Islam while directly threatening Yudhoyono, who is perceived by his rivals as weak. Indeed, tensions are already beginning to simmer in preparation for Indonesia's presidential election in 2014.