MANILA - A Filipino man arrested in Northern Ireland early this month is believed to have had links with a Malaysian Jemaah Islamiah (JI) militant, sources at the foreign office said today.

The JI militant, whose identity was not released, was arrested by Malaysian authorities early this year and is being kept at an undisclosed place while being interrogated, sources said.

The Philippine government wants "access to the detained JI leader because we have received information that he knows Ofrasio personally," one official said.

Jaybe Ofrasio, 31, was arrested in Northern Ireland late last month for allegedly helping fund terrorism. Officials said Philippines and Australian police were involved in the operation.

Formal request to M'sians

Ofrasio, a Muslim convert working as a cleaner and catering assistant living in Belfast, faces two charges of making funds and property available to a terrorist group.

Sources said the Philippine foreign office has already sent a formal request to the Malaysian embassy in Manila for Filipino authorities to interview the detained JI militant.

"We will send intelligence authorities in Malaysia to interrogate him," a source said.

The JI is thought to be the Southeast Asian arm of Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network, and is blamed for October 2002 bombings in Bali, Indonesia that left over 200 dead.

Intelligence authorities in Asia say JI has linked up with other Islamic militants in the region, including Muslim separatist rebels in the southern Philippines. - AFP