Indonesia frees cleric linked to Bali bombing

A radical cleric linked to the Bali nightclub bombings was freed from prison yesterday, stirring grief and anger among victims nearly two decades after more than 200 people, mostly foreign tourists, were killed in Indonesia's worst terror attack. Abu Bakar Bashir, 82, is seen as the spiritual leader of Islamist terror network Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), which was responsible for the massive blasts that ripped through a pair of packed bars in October 2002. The preacher was released after completing an unrelated jail term for helping fund militant training. Bashir had been previously jailed over the Bali bombings, but that conviction was quashed on appeal.