An Indonesian militant among a dozen from the Darul Islam group arrested in Malaysia was trained by Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda movement in Afghanistan, a report said today.

The Star newspaper said the Indonesian was trained to handle arms and make bombs and is believed to have conducted similar training for other members of the extremist group in Indonesia and the southern Philippines.

It quoted intelligence sources as saying that the man was a major influence on the other members of Darul Islam, which they described as a dangerous group.

A good sign

The daily reported yesterday that 12 members of Darul Islam - mostly Indonesians but including two Malaysians - who had been planning to attack neighbouring countries were arrested by Malaysian police in Sabah.

Indonesia has welcomed the arrests and said that the militants had been tracked for some time as they moved from Indonesia to Sabah on Borneo island and the southern Philippines.

"I believe this is a good sign and an important step to fight terrorism," Indonesia Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda told reporters here.