April 9, 2001, The People's Daily, US Firm Okays F-16 Counter-Trade with Philippines,
April 13, 2001, The People's Daily, Philippines Military Rescues U.S. Hostage,
January 15, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine President Approves Joint Exercise With US Troops,
January 15, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine-U.S. Military Exercises Triggered Off,
January 17, 2002, The People's Daily, US Sends Troops to Philippines for Joint Military Exercise Against Terrorism,
January 27, 2002, The People's Daily, U.S. Troops Participating in Joint Military Drills Subject to Philippine Laws,
January 31, 2002, The People's Daily, Roundup: Philippines-U.S. Military Exercises Going on Amid Controversy,
February 12, 2002, The People's Daily, S.Korea Consul to Go to Southern Philippines on Kidnapped Citizen,
February 12, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine Gov't, MILF to Meet on Joint Exercises,
February 19, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine Military Recovers 2 Farmers Kidnapped by Abu Sayyaf,
April 5, 2002, The People's Daily, US Spy Planes Spot Abu Sayyaf Hostages in Southern Philippine Island,
April 28, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippines-US Joint Military Exercises Start,
May 15, 2002, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf Willing to Release Female American Hostage: Report,
May 29, 2002, The People's Daily, US Helicopters Exchange Fire with Suspected Abu Sayyaf Rebels,
May 29, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine, US Military Reactions Contradicting on Helicopter Firing,
May 30, 2002, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf Promise to Free Filipino Hostage,
June 2, 2002, The People's Daily, U.S. Legislator Visits American Troops in Philippines,
June 3, 2002, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf Leader's Brother Killed,
June 8, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine Military Seals Mindanao to Stop Abu Escape,
June 11, 2002, The People's Daily, Arroyo Rallies Troops for Final Push Against Abu Sayyaf,
June 15, 2002, The People's Daily, US Troops Won't Fight Abu Sayyaf: Spokesman,
June 21, 2002, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf Bandits Slay Farmer in Southern Philippines,
June 21, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine President Says Abu Sayyaf Spokesman Killed Or Wounded,
June 28, 2002, The People's Daily, Military Recovers Abu Sayyaf Camp in Southern Philippines,
July 11, 2002, The People's Daily, US Military Invited to Joint Exercises in Abu Sayyaf lair,
July 16, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippines, US to Start Joint Navy Exercises,
July 22, 2002, The People's Daily, Suspected Abu Sayyaf Bomber Arrested in Southern Philippines,
July 25, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine People Protest Against Joint Exercises with US,
July 29, 2002, The People's Daily, US Soldier Allegedly Shoots Civilian in Southern Philippines,
July 29, 2002, The People's Daily, US Soldier Allegedly Shoots Civilian in Southern Philippines,
July 29, 2002, The People's Daily, Arroyo Orders Probe into US Soldier Shooting in Southern Philippines,
August 6, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine Troops Launch War Against Another Rebel Group,
August 10, 2002, The People's Daily, US: Philippine "New People's Army" Terrorist Group,
August 12, 2002, The People's Daily, Peace Process Going on in Philippines, Prospect Dimmed,
August 21, 2002, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf Takes Eight Hostages in Southern Philippines: Report,
August 22, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine Kidnappers Describe Beheading Hostages as "Jihad",
October 10, 2002, The People's Daily, 308 Rebels Surrender to Authorities in Southern Philippines,
October 14, 2002, The People's Daily, Joint Philippines-US Military Exercises Start Monday,
October 17, 2002, The People's Daily, 5 Killed, 144 Injured in Blasts in Southern Philippines,
October 17, 2002, The People's Daily, Three Killed, Dozens Hurt in Philippine Mall Blasts,
October 17, 2002, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf Leader Wanted by US Voices Intent to Surrender,
October 20, 2002, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf Leader Arrested in Manila,
December 19, 2002, The People's Daily, Seven Killed in Southern Philippine Massacre,
December 25, 2002, The People's Daily, Bomb Blast in Southern Philippines Kills 13 People,
January 1, 2003, The People's Daily, 7 killed in Blast in Southern Philippines,
February 17, 2003, The People's Daily, Arroyo Approves Philippine-US Joint War Game on Southern Island,
Diigo, October 10, 2003, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf holding hostages abducted in Borneo: report,
December 8, 2003, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf leader captured in southern Philippines,
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April 9, 2001, The People's Daily, US Firm Okays F-16 Counter-Trade with Philippines,
A leading American firm has expressed it willingness to sign a counter-trade deal with the Philippine government for the purchase of F-16 fighter planes for its air force.
Joseph Sclafani, executive managing director of Patt & Whitney, manufacturer of F-16 engines, said if the Philippine government would like a counter-trade deal for the purchase of F-16 planes, "my company is amenable to that deal," the Philippine News Agency reported Sunday.
Sclafani is now in Manila to attend the 7th International Aviation, Maritime and Defense AMD 2001 Exposition.
The F-16 multi-role fighter plane is said to be one of the fighter planes the Philippine Air Force would like to acquire to replace its aging F-5 aircraft.
The air force bought 30 S-211 jet trainer aircraft from Italy through counter-trade in 1989. The Philippines paid Italy in kind such as ladies' underwear.
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April 13, 2001, The People's Daily, Philippines Military Rescues U.S. Hostage,
Troops and police stormed a jungle hide-out on Thursday to free a U.S. hostage from Muslim rebels who had threatened to behead him as a grisly "birthday present" to the Philippine president.
The hostage, 25-year-old Jeffrey Schilling of Oakland, Calif., was in good health Thursday after the raid on Jolo island, 580 miles south of Manila. Marine commandos and police killed some Abu Sayyaf rebels and wounded others, said Brig. Gen. Diomedio Villanueva.
After the rebels threatened to behead Schilling last week, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo responded by declaring "all-out war" against the group, pouring 3,000 troops into the island's steamy jungles, then sending in another 1,800 reinforcements early Thursday.
She vowed to destroy the rebel movement.
Schilling, a Muslim convert, was taken by the rebels after he visited their camp in Jolo on Aug. 31. He was accompanied by his wife, Ivy Osani, the cousin of a rebel leader, Abu Sabaya. Osani was freed after the rebels seized Schilling.
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January 15, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine President Approves Joint Exercise With US Troops,
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has given the go-signal to the military to hold joint exercise with U.S. troops in Mindanao area, the southern Philippines.
Presidential spokesman Rigoberto Tiglao said Monday that the plan for the "Mindanao Shoulder by Shoulder" exercise to be held in Basilan and Zamboanga was submitted by Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) officials and Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes and was approved by Arroyo.
The exercise to be officially started on Tuesday will involve training of Philippine troops in an actual terrain of military operations and against an actual enemy, the Abu Sayyaf bandits.
Tiglao said that the U.S. personnel will not be engaged in combat, and they will be under the command and supervision of AFP officers. The program does not in any way involve the setting up of U.S. military facilities, he added.
He also said that the exercise will be undertaken under the framework of the Mutual Defense Treaty and the Visiting Forces Agreement between the two countries.
Dozens of U.S. military advisers have arrived the Philippines in the past months to help training Philippine troops fighting against the Abu Sayyaf bandits who are still holding two American and one Filipino hostages.
Tiglao said since last May to January 11, 2002, 166 Abu Sayyaf leaders and members have been killed in fire-fights, 211 arrested and 104 have surrendered.
The Abu Sayyaf bandit group, notorious for kidnapping-for-ransom activities, is on U.S. list of international terrorist groups.
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January 15, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine-U.S. Military Exercises Triggered Off,
The joint military exercises between the Philippines and the United States were triggered off on Tuesday in the southern Philippine island of Basilan and city of Zamboanga.
The exercises will involve at least 660 American troops and 1,200 Philippine soldiers that would train in battlefields where Abu Sayyaf bandits are still on the run, the Philippine Daily Inquirer on-line news reported Tuesday.
The anti-terrorism military training will last for six months to one year, and will allow American troops to participate in the hunt against Abu Sayyaf bandits who are holding an American missionary couple and one Filipino hostages.
Philippine Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes said previous war games were held under a premise of aggression by "imaginary" enemies, but the September 11 terrorist attacks in the U.S. have thrown the two countries together facing real enemies.
About 160 soldiers from the U.S. contingent would be special operations men training some nine battalions of the Philippine Armed Forces. The American forces would also be bringing with them sophisticated military equipment.
The exercises are reportedly the first of their kind since 1999, when the Philippines ratified a Visiting Forces Agreement with the U.S. to pave the way for resumption of large-scale joint exercises.
The exercises are being implemented more than 10 years after the Philippines shut down two American military bases in Clark and Subic, north of the country.
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January 17, 2002, The People's Daily, US Sends Troops to Philippines for Joint Military Exercise Against Terrorism
Some 250 U.S. troops have arrived in the Philippines for a joint military exercise and anti- terrorism training, U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld said Wednesday.
Addressing a press conference here, Rumsfeld said more than 200 of the troops will take part in the joint military exercise with Philippine forces which will last two and a half weeks, while several dozens of others are in an advance team for U.S. special forces who will provide counter-terrorism training for the Philippine forces.
The training group will eventually increase to 600, according to U.S. officials.
Rumsfeld indicated that the cooperation between the U.S. and the Philippines are part of U.S. efforts to expand the war against terrorism.
"What's taking place in the Philippines is that this is a global problem, that we are addressing it globally, not just in Afghanistan," he said.
U.S. President George W. Bush vowed to help Manila fight Muslim extremists led by Abu Sayyaf during a visit to Washington by Philippine President Macapagal Arroyo last November.
Asked if there is evidence the Abu Sayyaf group was involved in the September 11 attacks on America, Rumsfeld stressed that there is no question that there have been "linkages" between terrorism in the Philippines and Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda network.
He said that a terrorist network didn't have to be involved in the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon in order to be targets in the campaign against terrorism.
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January 27, 2002, The People's Daily, U.S. Troops Participating in Joint Military Drills Subject to Philippine Laws,
Justice Secretary Hernando Perez said Saturday that U.S. troops participating in the ongoing joint Philippine-American military exercises are subject to all the Philippine laws unless the government decides to waive its jurisdiction over them.
The local dzBB radio quoted Perez as saying that monitoring teams have been formed to assure that the American troops do not commit any offense while they are in the country for the joint wargames, dubbed Balikatan (Shoulder to Shoulder).
The Visiting Forces Agreement between the two countries, under which the military drills are being held, provides that while the Philippines has jurisdiction over erring American personnel, the government could waive this right upon request by the U.S. government depending on the nature of the offense mentioned under the agreement.
The Philippine Senate ratified the agreement in May 1999 allowing the resumption of large-scale Philippine-American joint military exercises in the country.
Some 660 U.S. soldiers will eventually be deployed to the southern Philippines where about 160 soldiers from U.S. special forces units will join local troops in operations against the Abu Sayyaf, which Washington listed as a terrorist group with links to the al-Qaeda network of Osama bin Laden after the terror attacks on the United States on September 11 last year.
Critics said the war games violated the country's Constitution.Civilian groups in Manila and other parts of the country held protest rallies in the past several days demanding the pullout of American soldiers.
The government, defending the U.S. military presence in the country, said the American troops are here only to train the local military in counter-terrorism and are banned from engaging in actual combat operations against the Abu Sayyaf although they are allowed to carry weapons and fire back if attacked.
The Abu Sayyaf bandits, which began a new kidnapping spree last May, are still holding an American couple and a Philippine nurse in the southern island of Basilan.
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January 31, 2002, The People's Daily, Roundup: Philippines-U.S. Military Exercises Going on Amid Controversy,
The Philippines-U.S. joint military exercises are going on after a brief opening ceremony Thursday morning in the southern Philippine city of Zamboanga, despite the controversy resulted from the doubts on legality of the operations.
Amid tight security, Philippine military chief General Diomedio Villanueva formally launched the six-month campaign, where up to 660 U.S. troops and 1,200 Philippine soldiers would take part in the operations in the south, aiming to eradicate the Abu Sayyaf bandit group.
Coded Balikatan, the exercises will see armed U.S. troops patrolling together with their Filipino counterparts in the battlefields hunting for the Abu Sayyaf bandits who are still holding an American couple and a Filipino nurse. The Americans are allowed to fight back if attacked by the bandits.
The exercises as a whole will involve the biggest deployments of U.S. troops abroad since the U.S. began its campaign in Afghanistan to wipe out the al-Qaeda terror network of Osama bin Laden blamed for the September 11 attacks.
Criticism rose from all levels of the Philippine society, saying that the presence of the U.S. military troops in the southern island of Basilan and city of Zamboanga might have violated Philippine laws and relevant bilateral treaties with the U.S.
At the ceremony this morning, where Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff General Diomedio Villanueva formally opened the six-month, three-phased military exercises, officials of both countries stressed U.S. troops will largely train the Filipinos and will not directly fight the Abu Sayyaf bandits.
Philippine Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes said the operation "brings hope to local residents that they will forever be rid of the terror that has stalked their lives and caused much suffering," stressing that the authorities have taken extra efforts to ensure that the deployment of the U.S. troops did not violate Philippine sovereignty.
Reyes said on Tuesday that the U.S. has spent an initial 20 million U.S. dollars on preparations for the joint exercises, while the Philippine side has spent 3.5 million pesos (about 673,000 dollars).
Lieutenant General Roy Cimatu, chief of AFP Southern Command, the authoritative body to guide the ongoing exercises, denied the deployment of the U.S. troops in Mindanao in the south is a step towards an American takeover of the local military.
Militant groups in some major Philippines cities including Manila and Zamboanga continued to wage demonstrations and strikes to protest the ongoing exercises. Reports here said physical conflicts have occurred between the demonstrators and the police.
Anticipating a rash of complaints resulting from the exercises,the Department of Justice has established "centers for violations of human rights" in Basilan and Zamboanga city, which, Justice Secretary Hernando Perez said, would insure human rights violations committed by the visiting U.S. soldiers would not go unchecked.
Perez said earlier that U.S. troops in the exercises are subject to all the Philippine laws unless the government decides to waive its jurisdiction over them.
The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), a rebellious group reportedly with close ties with the Abu Sayyaf group, warned the government on Saturday that the exercises could lead to the collapse of its peace talks with the government.
The 12,500-strong MILF, having been fighting since 1978 for an independent Islamic state in Mindanao, resumed peace talks last year with the administration of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
The Philippine military had launched mass campaigns hunting down on the Abu Sayyaf bandits in the southern Philippines since June last year. The American couple has been in Abu Sayyaf's custody for nearly nine months.
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February 12, 2002, The People's Daily, S.Korea Consul to Go to Southern Philippines on Kidnapped Citizen,
South Korean consul to the Philippines Chak Yung-Taik will go to the south of the country to negotiate the release of a kidnapped South Korean.
The South Korean consul is set to arrive on Friday afternoon in Sarangani where Yung Jae-Kyun, a South Korean national, was kidnapped on Wednesday, the Philippine Star on-line news reported Friday.
Chak and Carlos Bellonio, owner of a hotel in General Santos city in the province, were taken away by armed men when onboard a vehicle in a remote highway in the province.
A separate report here said the two victims, together with another six companions, were on a quest for supposed hidden treasure of nickel bars. The six companions, rescued by the military on Thursday, identified Salem Gogo, an alleged member of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), as the key leader in the kidnapping.
Early reports quoted the military as saying that it conducted a pursuit operation after the incident and arrested Abu Bandan, who is also believed to be an MILF member. The South Korean has reportedly agreed to pay ransom for the release of Chak.
However, the MILF denied on Friday its involvement in the incident, saying that neither Gogo nor Bandan was its members. It attributed the responsibility to members of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF).
The MNLF was set up by the jailed Muslim rebel leader Nur Misuari in 1972 to fight for an Islamic state in the southern Philippines. The MILF broke away from the MNLF in 1972. The MNLF reached a peace agreement with the government in 1996, but the MILF kept on fighting until recently when it also entered a peace talk with the government.
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February 12, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine Gov't, MILF to Meet on Joint Exercises,
Peace negotiators from the Philippine government and the rebel Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) will meet on Sunday to discuss issues surrounding the ongoing Philippine-U.S. military exercises.
MILF's Vice-Chairman for Political Affairs Ghadzali Jaafar said peace panels from both parties will meet in the southern city of Cotabato on the exercises that began last month in the southern city of Zamboanga and nearly island of Basilan, the Philippine News Agency reported.
About 660 U.S. troops are being deployed there to help the local military wipe out the Abu Sayyaf bandits, who are still holding an American couple and a Filipino nurse in Basilan.
The United States has listed Abu Sayyaf as an international terrorist group linked to the al-Qaeda network of Osama bin Laden, whom Washington held responsible for the September 11 terror attacks on the United States last year.
The 12,500-strong MILF, accused by the Philippine military of providing assistance to the Abu Sayyaf, has warned earlier that it will attack the U.S. troops who appear on its territory, while the military threatened to target the MILF if it gets in way of operations against the Abu Sayyaf.
Jaafar said that MILF representatives will also hold talks with government delegates on how the MILF can help in the present kidnapping crisis in the southern island of l Mindanao.
Latest victims of such kidnapping incidents are a South Korean national and a local hotel owner who were abducted last Wednesday in the province of Sarangani. The military blamed the MILF for the abduction, but the rebel group denied it.
The MILF, which has been fighting since 1978 for an independent Islamic state in the southern Philippines, entered into peace talks with the government last year and signed a ceasefire agreement.
Peace negotiators from the Philippine government and the rebel Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) will meet on Sunday to discuss issues surrounding the ongoing Philippine-U.S. military exercises.
MILF's Vice-Chairman for Political Affairs Ghadzali Jaafar said peace panels from both parties will meet in the southern city of Cotabato on the exercises that began last month in the southern city of Zamboanga and nearly island of Basilan, the Philippine News Agency reported.
About 660 U.S. troops are being deployed there to help the local military wipe out the Abu Sayyaf bandits, who are still holding an American couple and a Filipino nurse in Basilan.
The United States has listed Abu Sayyaf as an international terrorist group linked to the al-Qaeda network of Osama bin Laden, whom Washington held responsible for the September 11 terror attacks on the United States last year.
The 12,500-strong MILF, accused by the Philippine military of providing assistance to the Abu Sayyaf, has warned earlier that it will attack the U.S. troops who appear on its territory, while the military threatened to target the MILF if it gets in way of operations against the Abu Sayyaf.
Jaafar said that MILF representatives will also hold talks with government delegates on how the MILF can help in the present kidnapping crisis in the southern island of l Mindanao.
Latest victims of such kidnapping incidents are a South Korean national and a local hotel owner who were abducted last Wednesday in the province of Sarangani. The military blamed the MILF for the abduction, but the rebel group denied it.
The MILF, which has been fighting since 1978 for an independent Islamic state in the southern Philippines, entered into peace talks with the government last year and signed a ceasefire agreement.
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February 19, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine Military Recovers 2 Farmers Kidnapped by Abu Sayyaf,
The Philippine government troops Tuesday morning recovered two farmers kidnapped by the Abu Sayyaf bandits last Sunday in the southern island of Basilan.
The two victims, Latip Kasim and his brother, Danny, were recovered by government troops after being abandoned by the bandits upon sensing the approaching soldiers, the Philippine NewsAgency reported.
The Kasim brothers were harvesting copra in a remote area in the island province's capital, Isabela City, when they were seizedby Abu Sayyaf gunmen. The Abu Sayyaf suspected the Kasim brothers as military informers.
A relative of the victims said the Abu Sayyaf demanded 50,000 pesos (980 U.S. dollars) ransom for the release of the two.
Intensified military operations have degraded the capability ofthe dreaded kidnap group that their number had whittled down from about 1,000 to less than 100 at present, according to Armed ForcesSouthern Command chief Roy A. Cimatu.
The military had seized more than 400 weapons from the Abu Sayyaf.
The Abu Sayyaf is still holding three captives, American missionary Martin and Gracia Burnham, and Filipino nurse, Deborah Yap, in the jungles of Basilan.
April 28, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippines-US Joint Military Exercises Start,
Troops of the Philippines and the United States started their annual joint war game dubbed " Balikatan" in the Philippines Friday, Philippine News Agency (PNA) said.
About 1,400 Americans and 2,600 Filipinos are participating in the exercises this year, which will end on May 10, the PNA said.
The two armies resumed the Balikatan war game in 2000 after the Philippine Senate approved the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) between the two countries in May 1999.
The Balikatan exercises lasted for a month last year, involving a total number of 5,000 troops from the two sides.
This year, the two sides will reportedly do cross training and field activities at several places in the country, including the former Clark Air Base in Pampanga province.
U.S. military aircraft, including F-18 Hornet fighter bombers, will use the Crow Valley range in the Clark Air Base area for gunnery practice, together with Philippine Air Force (PAF) aircraft.
In a directive to the PAF, Vice President Teofisto Guingona reminded that any accident should be avoided, referring to similar exercises last year in which an accidental blast resulted in the death of two civilians in Toledo City, Cebu province.
"We do not want another Toledo," said Guingona, who is also the chairman of the Presidential Commission on the Visiting Forces Agreement.
Guingona said the presidential commission will closely monitor the conduct of the war game to ensure that "they meet our bilateral defense and national security commitments."
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The Philippine government troops Tuesday morning recovered two farmers kidnapped by the Abu Sayyaf bandits last Sunday in the southern island of Basilan.
The two victims, Latip Kasim and his brother, Danny, were recovered by government troops after being abandoned by the bandits upon sensing the approaching soldiers, the Philippine NewsAgency reported.
The Kasim brothers were harvesting copra in a remote area in the island province's capital, Isabela City, when they were seizedby Abu Sayyaf gunmen. The Abu Sayyaf suspected the Kasim brothers as military informers.
A relative of the victims said the Abu Sayyaf demanded 50,000 pesos (980 U.S. dollars) ransom for the release of the two.
Intensified military operations have degraded the capability ofthe dreaded kidnap group that their number had whittled down from about 1,000 to less than 100 at present, according to Armed ForcesSouthern Command chief Roy A. Cimatu.
The military had seized more than 400 weapons from the Abu Sayyaf.
The Abu Sayyaf is still holding three captives, American missionary Martin and Gracia Burnham, and Filipino nurse, Deborah Yap, in the jungles of Basilan.
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April 5, 2002, The People's Daily, US Spy Planes Spot Abu Sayyaf Hostages in Southern Philippine Island,
U.S. spy planes have caught digital images of the three remaining hostages of Abu Sayyaf terrorists on the southern Philippine island of Basilan.
Armed Forces Southern Command (Southcom) chief Lt. Gen. Roy Cimatu ordered Marines to scour islets off the main Basilan island after Navy gunboats clashed with gunmen who were fleeing on two high-speed pumpboats, the Philippine Star reported Friday.
Cimatu refused to reveal where the aerial digital photographs, showing American missionary couple Martin and Gracia Burnham and Filipina nurse Deborah Yap, were taken but assured the public the hostages are still in Basilan.
Cimatu said intelligence reports indicate that while the Abu Sayyaf rebels have divided themselves into smaller groups in a bid to slip out of Basilan, the terrorists are also squabbling among themselves over the ransom they hope to get for the Burnhams.
He said the spy plans brought by U.S. forces participating in the joint military exercises have been vital in the intelligence operations of the pursuing troops.
Some 660 American troops are helping and training the Filipino soldiers against the Abu Sayyaf bandits in the joint exercises in Basilan and the neighbor city of Zamboanga.
U.S. spy planes have caught digital images of the three remaining hostages of Abu Sayyaf terrorists on the southern Philippine island of Basilan.
Armed Forces Southern Command (Southcom) chief Lt. Gen. Roy Cimatu ordered Marines to scour islets off the main Basilan island after Navy gunboats clashed with gunmen who were fleeing on two high-speed pumpboats, the Philippine Star reported Friday.
Cimatu refused to reveal where the aerial digital photographs, showing American missionary couple Martin and Gracia Burnham and Filipina nurse Deborah Yap, were taken but assured the public the hostages are still in Basilan.
Cimatu said intelligence reports indicate that while the Abu Sayyaf rebels have divided themselves into smaller groups in a bid to slip out of Basilan, the terrorists are also squabbling among themselves over the ransom they hope to get for the Burnhams.
He said the spy plans brought by U.S. forces participating in the joint military exercises have been vital in the intelligence operations of the pursuing troops.
Some 660 American troops are helping and training the Filipino soldiers against the Abu Sayyaf bandits in the joint exercises in Basilan and the neighbor city of Zamboanga.
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Troops of the Philippines and the United States started their annual joint war game dubbed " Balikatan" in the Philippines Friday, Philippine News Agency (PNA) said.
About 1,400 Americans and 2,600 Filipinos are participating in the exercises this year, which will end on May 10, the PNA said.
The two armies resumed the Balikatan war game in 2000 after the Philippine Senate approved the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) between the two countries in May 1999.
The Balikatan exercises lasted for a month last year, involving a total number of 5,000 troops from the two sides.
This year, the two sides will reportedly do cross training and field activities at several places in the country, including the former Clark Air Base in Pampanga province.
U.S. military aircraft, including F-18 Hornet fighter bombers, will use the Crow Valley range in the Clark Air Base area for gunnery practice, together with Philippine Air Force (PAF) aircraft.
In a directive to the PAF, Vice President Teofisto Guingona reminded that any accident should be avoided, referring to similar exercises last year in which an accidental blast resulted in the death of two civilians in Toledo City, Cebu province.
"We do not want another Toledo," said Guingona, who is also the chairman of the Presidential Commission on the Visiting Forces Agreement.
Guingona said the presidential commission will closely monitor the conduct of the war game to ensure that "they meet our bilateral defense and national security commitments."
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May 15, 2002, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf Willing to Release Female American Hostage: Report,
The Abu Sayyaf kidnap-for-ransom group in the southern Philippines is reportedly willing to release an American hostage anytime soon, the Philippine News Agency reported on Wednesday.
Abu Sayyaf sub-commander Isnilon Japilon was quoted as saying that Gracia Burnham, the female hostage, is ailing and has become a drag in his group's constant run from one hideout to another to evade pursuing military troops.
This echoes early reports that the bandits may release Gracia due to her deteriorating health condition. She has reportedly been suffering from urinary infection while her husband has symptoms of malaria.
Philippine nurse Ediborah Yap, the third hostage, has likewise been a burden of the kidnappers, but Japilon chose to keep her for personal reasons.
The report also quoted an informant as saying that Abu Sayyaf leader Khadaffy Janjalani who had earlier handed the Burnhams over to Japilon supported the imminent release of Gracia.
A team of covert negotiators working for the freedom of the Burnhams still presses for the early release of all the hostages. It has sent medicines, food packs, drinking water, sweat shirts and personal care items to the hostages.
Earlier reports said the bandits are hiding with their hostages in the jungles on Basilan island in the south, but a separate report on Wednesday quoted a local official as saying that Japilon has slipped out of Basilan, and is now hiding somewhere in Zamboanga city not far from Basilan.
About 1,000 U.S. soldiers are in the southern Philippines helping thousands of local troops wipe out the Abu Sayyaf group which is allegedly linked to the al-Qaeda network of Osama bin Laden, the suspected mastermind of the September 11 attacks on the United States.
May 29, 2002, The People's Daily, US Helicopters Exchange Fire with Suspected Abu Sayyaf Rebels,
Two U.S. armed helicopters clashed with a group of bandits suspected to be members of the Abu Sayyaf rebel group in the southern Philippines, a ranking local military official said on Wednesday.
Soldiers on the helicopters exchanged fired late Monday with the gangsters on the ground when delivering supplies to military camps on the southern island of Basilan, the Philippine Star on-line news quoted Philippine Army Colonel Alexander Aleo as saying on Wednesday.
Aleo, who is the commanding officer of the Filipino troops on Basilan participating in the ongoing Philippine-U.S. military exercises, said there were no reports of any causalities on the U.S. side.
About 10 gunmen opened fire at the HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopters as the latter were flying over Tuburan town in Basilan, and the American soldiers on board the aircraft immediately returned fire.
It was the first time for the U.S. troops in Basilan to fight directly against suspected members of the Abu Sayyaf which is still holding hostage American missionary couple Martin and Gracia Burnham, and a Filipina nurse Ediborah Yap.
Filipino soldiers on the ground were sent off to pursue the bandits shortly after the clash but there was no reports on whether any of the gunmen were captured.
The Abu Sayyaf rebel group is also allegedly linked to the al-Qaeda terror network of Osama bin Laden, suspected mastermind of the September 11 attacks in the U.S. A sect of the group is now hiding with the three hostages in the jungles on Basilan.
Over 1,000 U.S. soldiers are deployed in the southern Philippines including 160 special troops and 340 military engineers on Basilan in a series of military exercises targeting the Abu Sayyaf bandits. The exercises are scheduled to end in July.
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May 29, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine, US Military Reactions Contradicting on Helicopter Firing,
Philippine and U.S. military participating in the ongoing exercises in the southern Philippines contradicted in their reaction to the reported clash between two U.S. helicopters and a group of suspected Abu Sayyaf bandits.
Local military reports on Wednesday said that two armed U.S. helicopters exchanged fires on late Monday with a group of bandits believed to be members of the Abu Sayyaf on the southern island of Basilan, the Philippine Star on-line news reported.
The helicopters were delivering supplies to military camps on Basilan, Philippine Army Colonel Alexander Aleo, commanding officer of the Filipino troops on the military exercises, was quoted as saying.
For his part, Major Richard Sater, spokesman for U.S. forces inthe southern Philippines, said the shooting was not "hostile fire"because it occurred during war games among the Filipino and American soldiers. The helicopters fired blanks, he added.
Philippine military spokesman Colonel Fredesvindo Covarrubias, on the contrary, maintained it was an attack by Abu Sayyaf members as the helicopters were flying over Tuburan town on Basilan, a known haunt of the bandit group.
Covarrubias said about 10 gunmen opened fire at the HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopters, and the American soldiers on board the aircraft immediately returned fire. The attackers fled after the helicopters fought back.
"We cannot prevent attacks. These are indiscriminate acts by terrorists," Covarrubias said, adding, "we are going to take extra precautions and additional security patrols in areas of training."
Filipino soldiers on the ground were sent off to pursue the bandits shortly after the conflict but there was no reports on whether any of the gunmen were captured.
The clash, if true, would have been the first time for the U.S.troops in Basilan to fight directly against the Abu Sayyaf which is still holding hostage American missionary couple Martin and Gracia Burnham, and a Filipina nurse Ediborah Yap.
The Abu Sayyaf rebel group is also allegedly linked to the al-Qaeda terror network of Osama bin Laden, suspected mastermind of the September 11 attacks in the U.S. A sect of the group is now hiding with the three hostages in the jungles on Basilan.
Over 1,000 U.S. soldiers are deployed in the southern Philippines including 160 special troops and 340 military engineers on Basilan in a series of military exercises targeting at the Abu Sayyaf bandits. The exercises are scheduled to end in July.
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June 15, 2002, The People's Daily, US Troops Won't Fight Abu Sayyaf: Spokesman,
U.S. soldiers are not allowed to join actual combat operations against the Abu Sayyaf who was held responsible for the deaths of an American and a local hostage, a military spokesman reiterated Saturday.
The 1,000 U.S. troops participating in the ongoing joint military exercises in the southern Philippines "are here for training, assistance and advisory," retired Major General Mel Rosales said, citing the Terms of Reference guiding the exercises, according to a Philippine Daily Inquirer online news report.
As of Friday, however, Rosales said he had not received any official report from the military Southern Command about U.S. troops awaiting orders for deployment in the manhunt against the Abu Sayyaf in Sirawai, Zamboanga del Norte province.
American hostage Martin Burnham and Filipina nurse Ediborah Yap were killed in a military rescue operation in Sirawai on June 7 while Martin's wife, Gracia, was wounded but rescued. The three were the last hostages of the bandit group's latest kidnapping spree which began in May last year.
Jaime Yambao, head of a presidential team monitoring the conduct of the joint exercises, said Friday that 160 American troops are on standby in Zamboanga city for orders to join Filipino soldiers pursuing remnants of the Abu Sayyaf group in Sirawai.
After the June 7 tragedy, the Philippine military has intensified its operations in the southern islands of Basilan and Jolo, two Abu Sayyaf strongholds, as well as in Zamboanga del Norte to finish this whole group, allegedly linked to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network.
The Philippine government has also sought assistance from other members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in capturing the bandits who would attempt to flee the country.
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June 21, 2002, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf Bandits Slay Farmer in Southern Philippines,
Suspected Abu Sayyaf bandits on Thursday struck again on the southern Philippine island of Basilan,killing a farmer whom they believed to be an informant of the military.
A total of 17 armed men broke into the house of coconut farmer Ping Sahilin in Sumisip town, claiming to punish Sahilin for his spying activities. They beheaded Ping Sahilin in front of his wife Edna, the Philippine Daily Inquirer on-line news reported.
Edna Sahilin said she told the bandits that they had not provided information to the military, but the latter would not believe her. They even ask her to retrieve her husband's head in another village 15 kilometers away. "I know those men are Abu Sayyaf members," Edna added.
Colonel Renato Miranda, commander of the marine brigade in the area, confirmed the attackers are known followers of Isnilon Hapilon, a key leader of the Abu Sayyaf group on Basilan.
Four Indonesian seamen onboard a tugboat were abducted on Monday by suspected Abu Sayyaf gunmen in the southern Philippine sea. One of the four managed to escape from his captors, and was recovered by the military on Wednesday on Jolo island also in the south. He identified the abductors as members of the Abu Sayyaf group.
Over 1,000 U.S. soldiers including 160 special troops are being deployed in the southern Philippines, participating an ongoing joint military exercise targeting at the Abu Sayyaf group, allegedly linked to international terrorist Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network.
The Abu Sayyaf kidnap-for-ransom group in the southern Philippines is reportedly willing to release an American hostage anytime soon, the Philippine News Agency reported on Wednesday.
Abu Sayyaf sub-commander Isnilon Japilon was quoted as saying that Gracia Burnham, the female hostage, is ailing and has become a drag in his group's constant run from one hideout to another to evade pursuing military troops.
This echoes early reports that the bandits may release Gracia due to her deteriorating health condition. She has reportedly been suffering from urinary infection while her husband has symptoms of malaria.
Philippine nurse Ediborah Yap, the third hostage, has likewise been a burden of the kidnappers, but Japilon chose to keep her for personal reasons.
The report also quoted an informant as saying that Abu Sayyaf leader Khadaffy Janjalani who had earlier handed the Burnhams over to Japilon supported the imminent release of Gracia.
A team of covert negotiators working for the freedom of the Burnhams still presses for the early release of all the hostages. It has sent medicines, food packs, drinking water, sweat shirts and personal care items to the hostages.
Earlier reports said the bandits are hiding with their hostages in the jungles on Basilan island in the south, but a separate report on Wednesday quoted a local official as saying that Japilon has slipped out of Basilan, and is now hiding somewhere in Zamboanga city not far from Basilan.
About 1,000 U.S. soldiers are in the southern Philippines helping thousands of local troops wipe out the Abu Sayyaf group which is allegedly linked to the al-Qaeda network of Osama bin Laden, the suspected mastermind of the September 11 attacks on the United States.
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May 29, 2002, The People's Daily, US Helicopters Exchange Fire with Suspected Abu Sayyaf Rebels,
Two U.S. armed helicopters clashed with a group of bandits suspected to be members of the Abu Sayyaf rebel group in the southern Philippines, a ranking local military official said on Wednesday.
Soldiers on the helicopters exchanged fired late Monday with the gangsters on the ground when delivering supplies to military camps on the southern island of Basilan, the Philippine Star on-line news quoted Philippine Army Colonel Alexander Aleo as saying on Wednesday.
Aleo, who is the commanding officer of the Filipino troops on Basilan participating in the ongoing Philippine-U.S. military exercises, said there were no reports of any causalities on the U.S. side.
About 10 gunmen opened fire at the HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopters as the latter were flying over Tuburan town in Basilan, and the American soldiers on board the aircraft immediately returned fire.
It was the first time for the U.S. troops in Basilan to fight directly against suspected members of the Abu Sayyaf which is still holding hostage American missionary couple Martin and Gracia Burnham, and a Filipina nurse Ediborah Yap.
Filipino soldiers on the ground were sent off to pursue the bandits shortly after the clash but there was no reports on whether any of the gunmen were captured.
The Abu Sayyaf rebel group is also allegedly linked to the al-Qaeda terror network of Osama bin Laden, suspected mastermind of the September 11 attacks in the U.S. A sect of the group is now hiding with the three hostages in the jungles on Basilan.
Over 1,000 U.S. soldiers are deployed in the southern Philippines including 160 special troops and 340 military engineers on Basilan in a series of military exercises targeting the Abu Sayyaf bandits. The exercises are scheduled to end in July.
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May 29, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine, US Military Reactions Contradicting on Helicopter Firing,
Philippine and U.S. military participating in the ongoing exercises in the southern Philippines contradicted in their reaction to the reported clash between two U.S. helicopters and a group of suspected Abu Sayyaf bandits.
Local military reports on Wednesday said that two armed U.S. helicopters exchanged fires on late Monday with a group of bandits believed to be members of the Abu Sayyaf on the southern island of Basilan, the Philippine Star on-line news reported.
The helicopters were delivering supplies to military camps on Basilan, Philippine Army Colonel Alexander Aleo, commanding officer of the Filipino troops on the military exercises, was quoted as saying.
For his part, Major Richard Sater, spokesman for U.S. forces inthe southern Philippines, said the shooting was not "hostile fire"because it occurred during war games among the Filipino and American soldiers. The helicopters fired blanks, he added.
Philippine military spokesman Colonel Fredesvindo Covarrubias, on the contrary, maintained it was an attack by Abu Sayyaf members as the helicopters were flying over Tuburan town on Basilan, a known haunt of the bandit group.
Covarrubias said about 10 gunmen opened fire at the HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopters, and the American soldiers on board the aircraft immediately returned fire. The attackers fled after the helicopters fought back.
"We cannot prevent attacks. These are indiscriminate acts by terrorists," Covarrubias said, adding, "we are going to take extra precautions and additional security patrols in areas of training."
Filipino soldiers on the ground were sent off to pursue the bandits shortly after the conflict but there was no reports on whether any of the gunmen were captured.
The clash, if true, would have been the first time for the U.S.troops in Basilan to fight directly against the Abu Sayyaf which is still holding hostage American missionary couple Martin and Gracia Burnham, and a Filipina nurse Ediborah Yap.
The Abu Sayyaf rebel group is also allegedly linked to the al-Qaeda terror network of Osama bin Laden, suspected mastermind of the September 11 attacks in the U.S. A sect of the group is now hiding with the three hostages in the jungles on Basilan.
Over 1,000 U.S. soldiers are deployed in the southern Philippines including 160 special troops and 340 military engineers on Basilan in a series of military exercises targeting at the Abu Sayyaf bandits. The exercises are scheduled to end in July.
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May 30, 2002, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf Promise to Free Filipino Hostage,
A Muslim guerrilla leader in the southern Philippines Thursday promised to free a Filipino nurse the group has held, but made no mention of an American couple who have also been kept hostage.
Abu Sayyaf leader, Abu Sabaya told a local radio station that his group would free nurse Deborah Yap "any time soon".
Yap was a nurse at a hospital in the town of Lamitan on Basilan island when it was attacked by Abu Sayyaf rebels in June last year. She was abducted by the guerrillas and has been held since then.
The group has also been holding American missionary couple Martin and Gracia Burnham since May 27 last year.
A Muslim guerrilla leader in the southern Philippines Thursday promised to free a Filipino nurse the group has held, but made no mention of an American couple who have also been kept hostage.
Abu Sayyaf leader, Abu Sabaya told a local radio station that his group would free nurse Deborah Yap "any time soon".
Yap was a nurse at a hospital in the town of Lamitan on Basilan island when it was attacked by Abu Sayyaf rebels in June last year. She was abducted by the guerrillas and has been held since then.
The group has also been holding American missionary couple Martin and Gracia Burnham since May 27 last year.
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June 2, 2002, The People's Daily, U.S. Legislator Visits American Troops in Philippines,
U.S. Representative Dana Rohrabacher flew to the southern Philippines Saturday to visit the American troops there helping the local military in combating the Abu Sayyaf group with alleged links to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network.
Rohrabacher, chairman of the U.S. House committee on foreign affairs, met with Brigadier General Donald Wurster, commanding officer of the 1,000-strong U.S. contingent participating in the ongoing joint military exercises in the southern Philippines, the Philippine Star online news reported.
The Californian legislator did not issue any statement about his visit, but Philippine National Security Adviser Roilo Golez said he assessed the joint exercises that started in January and the condition of the U.S. troops.
Rohrabacher also inspected projects undertaken by U.S. military engineers in Basilan, where the Abu Sayyaf has been holding the American missionary couple Martin and Gracia Burnham for a year, the military said.
U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz is said coming on Sunday for a two-day visit for consultations with the Philippine government on defense cooperation issues.
His visit comes amid reports that U.S. defense officials are debating a recommendation by Thomas Fargo, commander of the U.S. forces in the Pacific, to move the American soldiers in Basilan closer to search for the Burnhams.
The U.S. government announced on Wednesday it is offering a reward of 5 million U.S. dollars for information leading to the capture of five top Abu Sayyaf leaders.
Wolfowitz will be the fifth high-ranking official from Washington and Pentagon to visit the country since this year. Others who have visited Manila are Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Roberto Mueller, Thomas Fargo and his predecessor Dennis Blair, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Richard Myers.
June 2, 2002, The People's Daily, U.S. Legislator Visits American Troops in Philippines,
U.S. Representative Dana Rohrabacher flew to the southern Philippines Saturday to visit the American troops there helping the local military in combating the Abu Sayyaf group with alleged links to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network.
Rohrabacher, chairman of the U.S. House committee on foreign affairs, met with Brigadier General Donald Wurster, commanding officer of the 1,000-strong U.S. contingent participating in the ongoing joint military exercises in the southern Philippines, the Philippine Star online news reported.
The Californian legislator did not issue any statement about his visit, but Philippine National Security Adviser Roilo Golez said he assessed the joint exercises that started in January and the condition of the U.S. troops.
Rohrabacher also inspected projects undertaken by U.S. military engineers in Basilan, where the Abu Sayyaf has been holding the American missionary couple Martin and Gracia Burnham for a year, the military said.
U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz is said coming on Sunday for a two-day visit for consultations with the Philippine government on defense cooperation issues.
His visit comes amid reports that U.S. defense officials are debating a recommendation by Thomas Fargo, commander of the U.S. forces in the Pacific, to move the American soldiers in Basilan closer to search for the Burnhams.
The U.S. government announced on Wednesday it is offering a reward of 5 million U.S. dollars for information leading to the capture of five top Abu Sayyaf leaders.
Wolfowitz will be the fifth high-ranking official from Washington and Pentagon to visit the country since this year. Others who have visited Manila are Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Roberto Mueller, Thomas Fargo and his predecessor Dennis Blair, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Richard Myers.
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June 3, 2002, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf Leader's Brother Killed,
Police raided an Abu Sayyaf hideout in the southern city of Zamboanga late Sunday and killed a brother of one of the group's leaders, a newspaper report said.
Bakkal Hapilon was gunned down after he refused to surrender and opened fire at policemen who, tipped off by villagers, surrounded his hideout on the outskirts of Zamboanga, the Malaya daily reported.
He is the brother of Isnilon Hapilon, one of the five top Abu Sayyaf leaders wanted by the United States on an award of five million U.S. dollars.
Bakkal Hapilon himself has a bounty of one million pesos (about 20,000 dollars) offered by the Philippine government for his capture dead or alive.
The Abu Sayyaf, which has been holding an American missionary couple and a Filipina nurse hostage for a year on Basilan island south of Zamboanga, allegedly has links with the al-Qaeda network of Osama bin Laden, the suspected mastermind of the September 11 attacks on the United States.
Police raided an Abu Sayyaf hideout in the southern city of Zamboanga late Sunday and killed a brother of one of the group's leaders, a newspaper report said.
Bakkal Hapilon was gunned down after he refused to surrender and opened fire at policemen who, tipped off by villagers, surrounded his hideout on the outskirts of Zamboanga, the Malaya daily reported.
He is the brother of Isnilon Hapilon, one of the five top Abu Sayyaf leaders wanted by the United States on an award of five million U.S. dollars.
Bakkal Hapilon himself has a bounty of one million pesos (about 20,000 dollars) offered by the Philippine government for his capture dead or alive.
The Abu Sayyaf, which has been holding an American missionary couple and a Filipina nurse hostage for a year on Basilan island south of Zamboanga, allegedly has links with the al-Qaeda network of Osama bin Laden, the suspected mastermind of the September 11 attacks on the United States.
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June 8, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine Military Seals Mindanao to Stop Abu Escape,
Government forces have sealed all entry and exit points in the southern island of Mindanao amid reports that the fleeing Abu Sayyaf bandits plan to leave the region, Armed Forces Chief of Staff General Roy Cimatu said on Saturday.
Cimatu said on television that the bandits plan to settle in other parts of the country following Friday's military rescue operation on their last hostages American missionary Martin and Gracia Burnham and Filipina nurse Ediborah Yap.
Martin and Yap were killed while Gracia was rescued in the operation near Siraway town in the southern province of Zamboanga del Norte on Friday afternoon after more than one year in captivity.
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, calling the rescue "a success on the whole," has order the military to step up offensive operations against the Abu Sayyaf group.
Meanwhile, Lieutenant Colonel Reynato Padua, ground commander of the rescue operation, reiterated Saturday that Martin, who suffered multiple gunshot wounds, was executed by his captors.
Soldiers who pursued the Abu Sayyaf used "single fire" tactics to avoid hitting any of the three hostages, he told the Philippine Inquirer online news. "That's why we are sure the hostages were not hit by us."
Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes said earlier in the day that an autopsy will be done and the results will be released later. Martin's body has reportedly flown to the U.S. military base in Okinawa,Japan, and American doctors are conducting an autopsy.
Government forces have sealed all entry and exit points in the southern island of Mindanao amid reports that the fleeing Abu Sayyaf bandits plan to leave the region, Armed Forces Chief of Staff General Roy Cimatu said on Saturday.
Cimatu said on television that the bandits plan to settle in other parts of the country following Friday's military rescue operation on their last hostages American missionary Martin and Gracia Burnham and Filipina nurse Ediborah Yap.
Martin and Yap were killed while Gracia was rescued in the operation near Siraway town in the southern province of Zamboanga del Norte on Friday afternoon after more than one year in captivity.
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, calling the rescue "a success on the whole," has order the military to step up offensive operations against the Abu Sayyaf group.
Meanwhile, Lieutenant Colonel Reynato Padua, ground commander of the rescue operation, reiterated Saturday that Martin, who suffered multiple gunshot wounds, was executed by his captors.
Soldiers who pursued the Abu Sayyaf used "single fire" tactics to avoid hitting any of the three hostages, he told the Philippine Inquirer online news. "That's why we are sure the hostages were not hit by us."
Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes said earlier in the day that an autopsy will be done and the results will be released later. Martin's body has reportedly flown to the U.S. military base in Okinawa,Japan, and American doctors are conducting an autopsy.
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June 11, 2002, The People's Daily, Arroyo Rallies Troops for Final Push Against Abu Sayyaf,
President Gloria Arroyo flew to the southern Philippines on Tuesday to rally soldiers for a final push against Abu Sayyaf guerrillas after a bloody end to a year-long hostage crisis.
Mrs Arroyo arrived mid-morning in the southern port city amid heavy security and drove directly to a military hospital to visit seven soldiers and a civilian guide wounded in last week's rescue of US missionary Gracia Burnham.
Zamboanga, on the tip of the Zamboanga peninsula, is the staging ground for the military campaign against remnants of the Abu Sayyaf group who scattered after Friday's firefight in which Mrs Gracia Burnham's husband Martin Burnham and a Filipina captive, as well as four rebels were killed.
US and Filipino soldiers guarded the entrance to Camp Navarro, the headquarters of the southern Philippines military command.
Mrs Arroyo toured the base hospital, briefly shaking hands with the wounded soldiers and inspecting their wounds.
Later, the president was to meet with the southern Philippines military chief, Major General Ernesto Carolina, before flying to the nearby Abu Sayyaf stronghold of Basilan island for an overnight visit.
There she was scheduled to attend the wake for nurse Ediborah Yap, the slain Filipina hostage.
Officials have said the group of about 60 gunmen that held the Burnhams hostage for 376 days remained in the general area around Sirawai town on the peninsula.
US President George W. Bush sent 1,000 US advisers to the south in January to help Manila crush the Abu Sayyaf, described by both governments as a terrorist group with links to the Al-Qaeda network of Osama bin Laden.
_________________________________________________June 11, 2002, The People's Daily, Arroyo Rallies Troops for Final Push Against Abu Sayyaf,
President Gloria Arroyo flew to the southern Philippines on Tuesday to rally soldiers for a final push against Abu Sayyaf guerrillas after a bloody end to a year-long hostage crisis.
Mrs Arroyo arrived mid-morning in the southern port city amid heavy security and drove directly to a military hospital to visit seven soldiers and a civilian guide wounded in last week's rescue of US missionary Gracia Burnham.
Zamboanga, on the tip of the Zamboanga peninsula, is the staging ground for the military campaign against remnants of the Abu Sayyaf group who scattered after Friday's firefight in which Mrs Gracia Burnham's husband Martin Burnham and a Filipina captive, as well as four rebels were killed.
US and Filipino soldiers guarded the entrance to Camp Navarro, the headquarters of the southern Philippines military command.
Mrs Arroyo toured the base hospital, briefly shaking hands with the wounded soldiers and inspecting their wounds.
Later, the president was to meet with the southern Philippines military chief, Major General Ernesto Carolina, before flying to the nearby Abu Sayyaf stronghold of Basilan island for an overnight visit.
There she was scheduled to attend the wake for nurse Ediborah Yap, the slain Filipina hostage.
Officials have said the group of about 60 gunmen that held the Burnhams hostage for 376 days remained in the general area around Sirawai town on the peninsula.
US President George W. Bush sent 1,000 US advisers to the south in January to help Manila crush the Abu Sayyaf, described by both governments as a terrorist group with links to the Al-Qaeda network of Osama bin Laden.
June 15, 2002, The People's Daily, US Troops Won't Fight Abu Sayyaf: Spokesman,
U.S. soldiers are not allowed to join actual combat operations against the Abu Sayyaf who was held responsible for the deaths of an American and a local hostage, a military spokesman reiterated Saturday.
The 1,000 U.S. troops participating in the ongoing joint military exercises in the southern Philippines "are here for training, assistance and advisory," retired Major General Mel Rosales said, citing the Terms of Reference guiding the exercises, according to a Philippine Daily Inquirer online news report.
As of Friday, however, Rosales said he had not received any official report from the military Southern Command about U.S. troops awaiting orders for deployment in the manhunt against the Abu Sayyaf in Sirawai, Zamboanga del Norte province.
American hostage Martin Burnham and Filipina nurse Ediborah Yap were killed in a military rescue operation in Sirawai on June 7 while Martin's wife, Gracia, was wounded but rescued. The three were the last hostages of the bandit group's latest kidnapping spree which began in May last year.
Jaime Yambao, head of a presidential team monitoring the conduct of the joint exercises, said Friday that 160 American troops are on standby in Zamboanga city for orders to join Filipino soldiers pursuing remnants of the Abu Sayyaf group in Sirawai.
After the June 7 tragedy, the Philippine military has intensified its operations in the southern islands of Basilan and Jolo, two Abu Sayyaf strongholds, as well as in Zamboanga del Norte to finish this whole group, allegedly linked to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network.
The Philippine government has also sought assistance from other members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in capturing the bandits who would attempt to flee the country.
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June 21, 2002, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf Bandits Slay Farmer in Southern Philippines,
Suspected Abu Sayyaf bandits on Thursday struck again on the southern Philippine island of Basilan,killing a farmer whom they believed to be an informant of the military.
A total of 17 armed men broke into the house of coconut farmer Ping Sahilin in Sumisip town, claiming to punish Sahilin for his spying activities. They beheaded Ping Sahilin in front of his wife Edna, the Philippine Daily Inquirer on-line news reported.
Edna Sahilin said she told the bandits that they had not provided information to the military, but the latter would not believe her. They even ask her to retrieve her husband's head in another village 15 kilometers away. "I know those men are Abu Sayyaf members," Edna added.
Colonel Renato Miranda, commander of the marine brigade in the area, confirmed the attackers are known followers of Isnilon Hapilon, a key leader of the Abu Sayyaf group on Basilan.
Four Indonesian seamen onboard a tugboat were abducted on Monday by suspected Abu Sayyaf gunmen in the southern Philippine sea. One of the four managed to escape from his captors, and was recovered by the military on Wednesday on Jolo island also in the south. He identified the abductors as members of the Abu Sayyaf group.
Over 1,000 U.S. soldiers including 160 special troops are being deployed in the southern Philippines, participating an ongoing joint military exercise targeting at the Abu Sayyaf group, allegedly linked to international terrorist Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network.
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June 21, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine President Says Abu Sayyaf Spokesman Killed Or Wounded,
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo Friday announced that Abu Sayyaf spokesman Abu Sabaya was believed to have been killed or wounded in a clash earlier in the day with government troops in the southern province of Zamboanga del Norte.
Arroyo told reporters in an unscheduled press conference in the northern province of La Union that captured Abu Sayyaf members confirmed that Abu Sabaya jumped into the sea from their boat during the encounter with government troops.
Arroyo said Abu Sabaya was said to be wearing a black sweatshirt and soldiers confirmed shooting the man in the black sweatshirt.
"Government forces are now scouring the coast for Sabaya or his body," she added.
An initial field report said joint components of Navy and Marine encountered seven Abu Sayyaf members around 4:20 a.m. Friday (GMT 2020 Thursday) off the coast of Zamboanga del Norte.
A brief firefight resulted in the killing of three and the capture of four Abu Sayyaf bandits.
Abu Sabaya, whose true name is Adlam Tilao, carries 1 million U.S. dollars of bounty set by the U.S. government. Known for his tinted glasses and swaggering stance, he is the most high profile and hated among leaders of the bandit group.
News of his capture or death is the biggest breakthrough in the government's protracted war against the bandit group behind a string of kidnappings of dozens of Filipinos and foreign tourists.
June 21, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine President Says Abu Sayyaf Spokesman Killed Or Wounded,
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo Friday announced that Abu Sayyaf spokesman Abu Sabaya was believed to have been killed or wounded in a clash earlier in the day with government troops in the southern province of Zamboanga del Norte.
Arroyo told reporters in an unscheduled press conference in the northern province of La Union that captured Abu Sayyaf members confirmed that Abu Sabaya jumped into the sea from their boat during the encounter with government troops.
Arroyo said Abu Sabaya was said to be wearing a black sweatshirt and soldiers confirmed shooting the man in the black sweatshirt.
"Government forces are now scouring the coast for Sabaya or his body," she added.
An initial field report said joint components of Navy and Marine encountered seven Abu Sayyaf members around 4:20 a.m. Friday (GMT 2020 Thursday) off the coast of Zamboanga del Norte.
A brief firefight resulted in the killing of three and the capture of four Abu Sayyaf bandits.
Abu Sabaya, whose true name is Adlam Tilao, carries 1 million U.S. dollars of bounty set by the U.S. government. Known for his tinted glasses and swaggering stance, he is the most high profile and hated among leaders of the bandit group.
News of his capture or death is the biggest breakthrough in the government's protracted war against the bandit group behind a string of kidnappings of dozens of Filipinos and foreign tourists.
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June 28, 2002, The People's Daily, Military Recovers Abu Sayyaf Camp in Southern Philippines,
Philippine government troops on Friday recovered an Abu Sayyaf camp on the southern island of Jolo,but fail to capture or neutralize any bandits of the group.
When the soldiers attained the camp on the Mount Sunumaan complex in Patikul town of Jolo after gun fighting, the bandits had apparently withdrawn from the area, the Philippine Daily Inquirer on-line news quoted defense spokesman Mel Rosales as saying.
"The troops were trying to close in to get into a decisive battle but the Abu Sayyaf withdrew. They refused to fight," Rosales said.
The shootout burst out as the troops were pursuing some 100 bandits led by Khadaffy Janjalani and Radulan Sajiron whose sect clashed with the military's scout rangers on Thursday.
An Army lieutenant was killed while six soldiers were injured in the skirmish on Thursday. The military said the soldiers killed an unidentified number of bandits.
Rosales said about four battalions have been deployed in Sulu province where Jolo island is the main body. Their mission is to crush an Abu Sayyaf faction believed encamping in the area.
Since Thursday, the military has shifted its focus from other southern provinces to Jolo island to annihilate Janjalani who took the leadership of the bandit group after his brother and the group's founder Abdurajak Janjalani was killed by the military in 1998.
June 28, 2002, The People's Daily, Military Recovers Abu Sayyaf Camp in Southern Philippines,
Philippine government troops on Friday recovered an Abu Sayyaf camp on the southern island of Jolo,but fail to capture or neutralize any bandits of the group.
When the soldiers attained the camp on the Mount Sunumaan complex in Patikul town of Jolo after gun fighting, the bandits had apparently withdrawn from the area, the Philippine Daily Inquirer on-line news quoted defense spokesman Mel Rosales as saying.
"The troops were trying to close in to get into a decisive battle but the Abu Sayyaf withdrew. They refused to fight," Rosales said.
The shootout burst out as the troops were pursuing some 100 bandits led by Khadaffy Janjalani and Radulan Sajiron whose sect clashed with the military's scout rangers on Thursday.
An Army lieutenant was killed while six soldiers were injured in the skirmish on Thursday. The military said the soldiers killed an unidentified number of bandits.
Rosales said about four battalions have been deployed in Sulu province where Jolo island is the main body. Their mission is to crush an Abu Sayyaf faction believed encamping in the area.
Since Thursday, the military has shifted its focus from other southern provinces to Jolo island to annihilate Janjalani who took the leadership of the bandit group after his brother and the group's founder Abdurajak Janjalani was killed by the military in 1998.
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July 11, 2002, The People's Daily, US Military Invited to Joint Exercises in Abu Sayyaf lair,
July 11, 2002, The People's Daily, US Military Invited to Joint Exercises in Abu Sayyaf lair,
The Armed Forces of the Philippines has asked the US Pacific Command to join Philippine troops in conducting counter-terrorist exercises in Sulu province.
Philippine military chief General Roy Cimatu said he has written a letter to Admire Thomas Fargo, commander-in-chief of theUS Pacific Command, recommending that the southern province of Sulu be the site of the next Balikatan exercises that would again use Abu Sayyaf rebels as live targets.
The ongoing exercise coded Balikatan 02-1 is scheduled to end on July 31, but a set of small-scale exercises are expected to be conducted in Zamboanga province in the south and Nueva Ecija province in the north shortly after July 31. The next formal exercise will start in October.
Cimatu said his recommendation is being discussed at the "higher levels" of both sides. Most likely, he said, another Terms of Reference will be drafted once the recommendation is approved.
In an other development, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said on Wednesday the operations in Sulu province will be a component in the next joint military exercise, and it is an idea from the US side. Sulu, especially its main body Jolo island, is a known lair of the largest units of the Abu Sayyaf bandits.
Arroyo also said that some of the sophisticated equipment, especially that for night-flying, used by the US soldiers in the Philippine-US joint military exercises will be left behind when the exercise ends.
However, Brigade General Donald Wurster, commander of the US contingent participating in the ongoing joint exercise, said earlier that their Filipino counterparts should thoroughly assess the situation in Sulu, and if the US solders were to be deployed there, their safety should be guaranteed.
Although the six-month Balikatan will officially wind up in twoweeks, over 400 US military engineers and security troops will stay in Basilan and Zamboanga to complete several infrastructure projects. Currently, there are about 1,000 US troops dispatched tothe southern Philippines.
Philippine military chief General Roy Cimatu said he has written a letter to Admire Thomas Fargo, commander-in-chief of theUS Pacific Command, recommending that the southern province of Sulu be the site of the next Balikatan exercises that would again use Abu Sayyaf rebels as live targets.
The ongoing exercise coded Balikatan 02-1 is scheduled to end on July 31, but a set of small-scale exercises are expected to be conducted in Zamboanga province in the south and Nueva Ecija province in the north shortly after July 31. The next formal exercise will start in October.
Cimatu said his recommendation is being discussed at the "higher levels" of both sides. Most likely, he said, another Terms of Reference will be drafted once the recommendation is approved.
In an other development, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said on Wednesday the operations in Sulu province will be a component in the next joint military exercise, and it is an idea from the US side. Sulu, especially its main body Jolo island, is a known lair of the largest units of the Abu Sayyaf bandits.
Arroyo also said that some of the sophisticated equipment, especially that for night-flying, used by the US soldiers in the Philippine-US joint military exercises will be left behind when the exercise ends.
However, Brigade General Donald Wurster, commander of the US contingent participating in the ongoing joint exercise, said earlier that their Filipino counterparts should thoroughly assess the situation in Sulu, and if the US solders were to be deployed there, their safety should be guaranteed.
Although the six-month Balikatan will officially wind up in twoweeks, over 400 US military engineers and security troops will stay in Basilan and Zamboanga to complete several infrastructure projects. Currently, there are about 1,000 US troops dispatched tothe southern Philippines.
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July 16, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippines, US to Start Joint Navy Exercises,
The Philippine and US navies will start on Wednesday an 11-day series of combined military exercises in the northern Philippine province of Pampanga.
The opening ceremony will take place at Subic Bay on Wednesday,a former US navy base, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) public information office said in a press statement released on Tuesday morning.
The annual bilateral naval exercise, also known as the Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) 2002, is a regularly-scheduled annual bilateral exercise between the two navies, and is now the eighth session.
A total of 18 combined military exercises were outlined as part of the Mutual Defense Treaty between the US and the Philippine military for the calendar year 2003, and 13 of those have already been completed. The five others will be executed before the year end, the statement said.
The training exercise is designed to promote interoperability between the US and Philippine forces in the areas of operational planning, command and control, tactics and community rations projects.
About 1,400 US soldiers, sailors, marines and coast guards, headed by Rear Admiral Jeff Cassias of the US Navy, will participate in the operation. A total of 1,396 Filipino servicemen composed of sailors, marines and coast guards will also join in.
A Philippine-US joint military exercise coded Balikatan 02-1 is still going on in the southern Philippines targeting the Abu Sayyaf kidnap-for-ransom group which is allegedly linked to the al-Qaeda international terror network. Around 1,000 US troops are being deployed for the exercise slated to wind down on July 31.
A US soldier participating in the Philippine-US military exercise allegedly shot and wounded a civilian on southern Philippine island of Basilan, House Representative Satur Ocampo said Friday.
Buyongbuyong Isnail, a resident of Tuburan town, was wounded in the thigh when an unidentified black American soldier allegedly shot him midnight Wednesday, the Philippine on-line news quoted Ocampo as saying.
"Jurida Isnail, the wife, testified that they were sleeping in their house when three soldiers two Filipinos and one American
roused them from their sleep to ask them about a rifle confiscated from a house some 300 meters away," Ocampo said.
"Her husband was getting up on his feet when the American soldier suddenly fired three shots from his rifle, wounding Buyongbuyong on the thigh," Ocampo added.Soldiers brought Buyongbuyong to a nearby hospital and later transferred him to a hospital inside the military's Southern Command in Zamboanga City not far from Basilan.
"We see a clear violation even of the terms of reference of the Balikatan exercises," Ocampo said, referring to guidelines of the anti-terrorism exercises of Filipino and US troops which prohibit the American soldiers from direct involvement in field operations and from firing their guns except in self-defense.
Ocampo and members of groups against the joint exercises are on Basilan now for a mission to probe the effects of the military drills on residents of the island. The mission was still trying to get details of the incident, which appeared to be "the first alleged direct involvement of an American soldier (in a military operation)."
The report said the US Embassy in Manila did not make immediate response to such allegation.
July 16, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippines, US to Start Joint Navy Exercises,
The Philippine and US navies will start on Wednesday an 11-day series of combined military exercises in the northern Philippine province of Pampanga.
The opening ceremony will take place at Subic Bay on Wednesday,a former US navy base, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) public information office said in a press statement released on Tuesday morning.
The annual bilateral naval exercise, also known as the Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) 2002, is a regularly-scheduled annual bilateral exercise between the two navies, and is now the eighth session.
A total of 18 combined military exercises were outlined as part of the Mutual Defense Treaty between the US and the Philippine military for the calendar year 2003, and 13 of those have already been completed. The five others will be executed before the year end, the statement said.
The training exercise is designed to promote interoperability between the US and Philippine forces in the areas of operational planning, command and control, tactics and community rations projects.
About 1,400 US soldiers, sailors, marines and coast guards, headed by Rear Admiral Jeff Cassias of the US Navy, will participate in the operation. A total of 1,396 Filipino servicemen composed of sailors, marines and coast guards will also join in.
A Philippine-US joint military exercise coded Balikatan 02-1 is still going on in the southern Philippines targeting the Abu Sayyaf kidnap-for-ransom group which is allegedly linked to the al-Qaeda international terror network. Around 1,000 US troops are being deployed for the exercise slated to wind down on July 31.
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July 22, 2002, The People's Daily, Suspected Abu Sayyaf Bomber Arrested in Southern Philippines,
A suspected member of the Abu Sayyaf Muslim extremist group has been nabbed in the southern Philippine province of Sultan Kudarat for allegedly plotting deadly bomb attacks, police said on Monday.
The suspect identified as Abdulbasit Usman was rounded up when the police raided a rebel hideout in a remote village in the province on Sunday, the Philippine Daily Inquirer on-line news reported.
Usman, possibly an Abu Sayyaf bomb expert once trained with terrorist cells in Afghanistan, was captured after months of surveillance work. Intelligence reports said he was an aide to Abu Muslim, an Abu Sayyaf leader arrested early this year after launching a bombing spree in the southern Philippines.
Usman was allegedly planning to launch a second wave of bombings, as the police seized weapons and home-made explosives from his hideout, regional police director Chief Superintendent Bartolome Baluyot was quoted as saying.
The Abu Sayyaf is a self-styled rebel group in Mindanao in the southern Philippines, notorious for its kidnap-for-ransom activities victimizing local Christians and foreign travelers in the area.
More than 1,000 US troops now in the southern Philippines for a joint exercise targeting at the extremist group. The exercise will end on July 31, but the two governments have agreed to continue with their counter-terrorism operations later this year in the south.
There was a plan to deploy US troops on Sulu island, another major Abu Sayyaf lair in the south, but Philippine Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes ruled out the possibility late last week. The next round of war game will start in October.
July 22, 2002, The People's Daily, Suspected Abu Sayyaf Bomber Arrested in Southern Philippines,
A suspected member of the Abu Sayyaf Muslim extremist group has been nabbed in the southern Philippine province of Sultan Kudarat for allegedly plotting deadly bomb attacks, police said on Monday.
The suspect identified as Abdulbasit Usman was rounded up when the police raided a rebel hideout in a remote village in the province on Sunday, the Philippine Daily Inquirer on-line news reported.
Usman, possibly an Abu Sayyaf bomb expert once trained with terrorist cells in Afghanistan, was captured after months of surveillance work. Intelligence reports said he was an aide to Abu Muslim, an Abu Sayyaf leader arrested early this year after launching a bombing spree in the southern Philippines.
Usman was allegedly planning to launch a second wave of bombings, as the police seized weapons and home-made explosives from his hideout, regional police director Chief Superintendent Bartolome Baluyot was quoted as saying.
The Abu Sayyaf is a self-styled rebel group in Mindanao in the southern Philippines, notorious for its kidnap-for-ransom activities victimizing local Christians and foreign travelers in the area.
More than 1,000 US troops now in the southern Philippines for a joint exercise targeting at the extremist group. The exercise will end on July 31, but the two governments have agreed to continue with their counter-terrorism operations later this year in the south.
There was a plan to deploy US troops on Sulu island, another major Abu Sayyaf lair in the south, but Philippine Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes ruled out the possibility late last week. The next round of war game will start in October.
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July 25, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine People Protest Against Joint Exercises with US,
Protesters against Philippine-US joint military exercises would launch a coordinated "air, sea, and land" protest action on July 25-31 against the planned expansion and extension of the war exercises in the country.
The activity, dubbed "A Nationwide Journey for Sovereignty and Peace," would be the first inter-island protest action involving participants from all over the Philippines, the Philippine Daily Inquirer online news reported Thursday.
"We will go around the country to expose the truth about the Mutual Logistics and Support Agreement (MLSA) which is a treaty of treason, and in protest of the mendicant, anti-Filipino position of the (Macapagal) Arroyo government," said Bayans secretary-general Teodoro Casino in a statement.
The draft MLSA drawn by the Philippine and US military earlier this year, will allow logistics facilities on Philippine territory for US vessels and aircraft when they come for training exercises.It will also set the guidelines as what weapons would be allowed into the Philippines as well as parameters on troop replacement.
Participants to the nation-wide protest will board ships, buses,jeeps and planes as they make their way to Zamboanga City in the southern Philippines where they will hold rallies in front of the Southern Command headquarters on July 30 and 31 with the International Solidarity Mission's foreign and local delegates.
Most of the over 1,000 US troops will leave Zamboanga and nearby Basilan city before July 31 when the half-year-long joint exercises with Filipino soldiers in the southern Philippines end.
Some other US troops are still holding short-term exercises in other parts of the Philippines.
The rally at Zamboanga will "put a symbolical period to the exercises and stress opposition to any extension or expansion of the war games," Casino said.
The Philippine government has said more joint exercises between the two countries' troops will be held within the year.
July 25, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine People Protest Against Joint Exercises with US,
Protesters against Philippine-US joint military exercises would launch a coordinated "air, sea, and land" protest action on July 25-31 against the planned expansion and extension of the war exercises in the country.
The activity, dubbed "A Nationwide Journey for Sovereignty and Peace," would be the first inter-island protest action involving participants from all over the Philippines, the Philippine Daily Inquirer online news reported Thursday.
"We will go around the country to expose the truth about the Mutual Logistics and Support Agreement (MLSA) which is a treaty of treason, and in protest of the mendicant, anti-Filipino position of the (Macapagal) Arroyo government," said Bayans secretary-general Teodoro Casino in a statement.
The draft MLSA drawn by the Philippine and US military earlier this year, will allow logistics facilities on Philippine territory for US vessels and aircraft when they come for training exercises.It will also set the guidelines as what weapons would be allowed into the Philippines as well as parameters on troop replacement.
Participants to the nation-wide protest will board ships, buses,jeeps and planes as they make their way to Zamboanga City in the southern Philippines where they will hold rallies in front of the Southern Command headquarters on July 30 and 31 with the International Solidarity Mission's foreign and local delegates.
Most of the over 1,000 US troops will leave Zamboanga and nearby Basilan city before July 31 when the half-year-long joint exercises with Filipino soldiers in the southern Philippines end.
Some other US troops are still holding short-term exercises in other parts of the Philippines.
The rally at Zamboanga will "put a symbolical period to the exercises and stress opposition to any extension or expansion of the war games," Casino said.
The Philippine government has said more joint exercises between the two countries' troops will be held within the year.
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July 29, 2002, The People's Daily, US Soldier Allegedly Shoots Civilian in Southern Philippines,
A US soldier participating in the Philippine-US military exercise allegedly shot and wounded a civilian on southern Philippine island of Basilan, House Representative Satur Ocampo said Friday.
Buyongbuyong Isnail, a resident of Tuburan town, was wounded in the thigh when an unidentified black American soldier allegedly shot him midnight Wednesday, the Philippine on-line news quoted Ocampo as saying.
"Jurida Isnail, the wife, testified that they were sleeping in their house when three soldiers two Filipinos and one American
roused them from their sleep to ask them about a rifle confiscated from a house some 300 meters away," Ocampo said.
"Her husband was getting up on his feet when the American soldier suddenly fired three shots from his rifle, wounding Buyongbuyong on the thigh," Ocampo added.Soldiers brought Buyongbuyong to a nearby hospital and later transferred him to a hospital inside the military's Southern Command in Zamboanga City not far from Basilan.
"We see a clear violation even of the terms of reference of the Balikatan exercises," Ocampo said, referring to guidelines of the anti-terrorism exercises of Filipino and US troops which prohibit the American soldiers from direct involvement in field operations and from firing their guns except in self-defense.
Ocampo and members of groups against the joint exercises are on Basilan now for a mission to probe the effects of the military drills on residents of the island. The mission was still trying to get details of the incident, which appeared to be "the first alleged direct involvement of an American soldier (in a military operation)."
The report said the US Embassy in Manila did not make immediate response to such allegation.
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July 29, 2002, The People's Daily, Arroyo Orders Probe into US Soldier Shooting in Southern Philippines,
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ordered on Sunday the probe into a case wherein a US soldier allegedly shot and wounded a Filipino suspected to be member of the Abu Sayyaf bandit group in the southern Philippines.
Arroyo said the Department of National Defense would look into the accusation of House Representative Satur Ocampo that a suspected member of the Abu Sayyaf group was shot in the leg by the U.S. soldier during a raid around midnight Thursday in Tuburantown, Basilan island in the south, the ABS-CBN on-line news reported.
However, both US and Philippine militaries denied the allegation, and the latter even said the accused US soldier actually provided first aid to the suspect wounded while trying to snatch the gun of a Filipino soldier who was arresting him.
"The burden of proof is on the accuser," Arroyo told reporters,adding that Ocampo's group should also look into atrocities committed by the Abu Sayyaf bandits against civilians.
The presidential palace committed another blunder on Sunday when it called for a press conference regarding the arrest of an Abu Sayyaf leader, Hadji Yusuf Ibrahim. But it was canceled later because the military operations were belated.
Arroyo declared last week that Faisal Marohomsar, boss of the kidnap-for-ransom group "Pentagon," had surrendered, but she retracted her announcement several hours later.
July 29, 2002, The People's Daily, Arroyo Orders Probe into US Soldier Shooting in Southern Philippines,
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ordered on Sunday the probe into a case wherein a US soldier allegedly shot and wounded a Filipino suspected to be member of the Abu Sayyaf bandit group in the southern Philippines.
Arroyo said the Department of National Defense would look into the accusation of House Representative Satur Ocampo that a suspected member of the Abu Sayyaf group was shot in the leg by the U.S. soldier during a raid around midnight Thursday in Tuburantown, Basilan island in the south, the ABS-CBN on-line news reported.
However, both US and Philippine militaries denied the allegation, and the latter even said the accused US soldier actually provided first aid to the suspect wounded while trying to snatch the gun of a Filipino soldier who was arresting him.
"The burden of proof is on the accuser," Arroyo told reporters,adding that Ocampo's group should also look into atrocities committed by the Abu Sayyaf bandits against civilians.
The presidential palace committed another blunder on Sunday when it called for a press conference regarding the arrest of an Abu Sayyaf leader, Hadji Yusuf Ibrahim. But it was canceled later because the military operations were belated.
Arroyo declared last week that Faisal Marohomsar, boss of the kidnap-for-ransom group "Pentagon," had surrendered, but she retracted her announcement several hours later.
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August 6, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine Troops Launch War Against Another Rebel Group,
After cracking down on the Abu Sayyaf bandit group in the southern Philippines, the military said the next target is the New People's Army (NPA) rebels.
"It's just too alarming," Armed Forces chief General Roy Cimatu told reporters on Tuesday, referring to the increasing terrorist activities and influence over villages nation-wide by the NPA.
"The NPA has terrorized some barangays (villages) to make them serve as sanctuaries for them. We also need to refocus our energies versus secessionist movements," he told the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines at the Mandarin Hotel in Metro Manila.
Earlier, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ordered the Armed Forces to redeploy its troops from Zamboanga and Basilan, where the Abu Sayyaf operates, to areas where there is a resurgence of NPA activities.
Cimatu said the general headquarters has requested the Presidential Palace through the Department of National Defense an authorization and budget for the recruitment of an additional 7,000 regular troops and about 15,000 members of the Citizens' Armed Forces Geographical Units for next year.
The current Armed Forces strength is at 113,000. It is facing at least four major threat groups including the NPA whose strength was pegged at 11,094 men.
Aside from the NPA, the Armed Forces also have to contend with the separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) with more than 12,000 men, the Abu Sayyaf Group with some 200 remnants, and the armed followers of jailed rebel leader Nur Misuari with 4,700 men.
Cimatu also announced on Tuesday that government troops have arrested a senior NPA leader in sweeps of rebel hideouts in the southern Philippines.
"This is a very good development, just only to emphasize the directive of the president to intensity our operations against the New People's Army," he said.
On the same day, Jose Maria Sison, political leader of the NPA,said in a statement from his exile in the Netherlands that the Arroyo administration is ending all prospects of reopening peace talks with the NPA.
Sison said that the NPA would intensify its assaults, using "both basic and special operations," and called for new kinds of attacks, the Philippine Star online news reported.
"For instance, the NPA can destroy electrical towers and lines," to divert the attention of the military, show the strength of the guerrillas and cause "calculated" economic disruption, Sison was quoted as saying.
He also called on Muslim separatist insurgent groups, like the MILF and the MNLF, to simultaneously launch attacks on the government.
Peace talks between the government and the NPA, which has raised a rebellion since 1969, were called off last year after the NPA assassinated two members of congress.
After cracking down on the Abu Sayyaf bandit group in the southern Philippines, the military said the next target is the New People's Army (NPA) rebels.
"It's just too alarming," Armed Forces chief General Roy Cimatu told reporters on Tuesday, referring to the increasing terrorist activities and influence over villages nation-wide by the NPA.
"The NPA has terrorized some barangays (villages) to make them serve as sanctuaries for them. We also need to refocus our energies versus secessionist movements," he told the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines at the Mandarin Hotel in Metro Manila.
Earlier, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ordered the Armed Forces to redeploy its troops from Zamboanga and Basilan, where the Abu Sayyaf operates, to areas where there is a resurgence of NPA activities.
Cimatu said the general headquarters has requested the Presidential Palace through the Department of National Defense an authorization and budget for the recruitment of an additional 7,000 regular troops and about 15,000 members of the Citizens' Armed Forces Geographical Units for next year.
The current Armed Forces strength is at 113,000. It is facing at least four major threat groups including the NPA whose strength was pegged at 11,094 men.
Aside from the NPA, the Armed Forces also have to contend with the separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) with more than 12,000 men, the Abu Sayyaf Group with some 200 remnants, and the armed followers of jailed rebel leader Nur Misuari with 4,700 men.
Cimatu also announced on Tuesday that government troops have arrested a senior NPA leader in sweeps of rebel hideouts in the southern Philippines.
"This is a very good development, just only to emphasize the directive of the president to intensity our operations against the New People's Army," he said.
On the same day, Jose Maria Sison, political leader of the NPA,said in a statement from his exile in the Netherlands that the Arroyo administration is ending all prospects of reopening peace talks with the NPA.
Sison said that the NPA would intensify its assaults, using "both basic and special operations," and called for new kinds of attacks, the Philippine Star online news reported.
"For instance, the NPA can destroy electrical towers and lines," to divert the attention of the military, show the strength of the guerrillas and cause "calculated" economic disruption, Sison was quoted as saying.
He also called on Muslim separatist insurgent groups, like the MILF and the MNLF, to simultaneously launch attacks on the government.
Peace talks between the government and the NPA, which has raised a rebellion since 1969, were called off last year after the NPA assassinated two members of congress.
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August 10, 2002, The People's Daily, US: Philippine "New People's Army" Terrorist Group,
The US State Department distributed a statement in Manila Saturday putting the Philippine rebel group New People's Army (NPA) on its list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations.
In the statement, US Secretary of State Colin Powell said the decision was made after an exhaustive review of the group's violent activities.
He said the group "strongly opposed any U.S. presence in the Philippines and has killed U.S. citizens there (in the Philippines)."
Powell said, "the group has also killed, injured, or kidnapped numerous Philippine citizens, including government officials."
As a result, the U.S. will be imposing measures against the terrorist group, including the blockade by US financial institution of assets held by the group and deportation of all individuals or groups related with the NPA from all the US territories.
At the beginning of this week, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ordered the Armed Forces to redeploy its troops from Zamboanga and Basilan, where the Abu Sayyaf operates, to areas where there is a resurgence of NPA activities.
Media reports said after cracking down the Abu Sayyaf bandit group with the help of US troops, the Philippine government's next target is likely to be the NPA.
Peace talks between the government and the NPA, which has operated since 1969, were called off last year after the NPA assassinated two Congressmen.
Jose Maria Sison, the exiled political leader of the NPA announced from the Netherlands on Tuesday in response to Arroyo's redeployment of armed forces that the NPA would intensify its assaults against government troops. It would be using "both basic and special operations," such as "destroying electrical towers and lines," to divert the attention of the military, show the strength of the guerrillas and cause "calculated" economic disruption.
He also called on the Muslim separatist insurgent groups to simultaneously launch attacks on the government.
However, Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye said on Wednesday that Arroyo did not declare an "all-out war" against the NPA, but rather a redeployment of the military to outlying communities to ensure peace and order.
The government also announced on Friday resumption of peace talks with the NPA in late August or September.
Over 1,000 US troops trained and assisted Filipino soldiers in the six-month joint exercises ended on July 31 to combat the Abu Sayyaf which was also listed as a foreign terrorist group by the US government. Over hundred Abu Sayyaf members were reportedly killed during the exercises.
A new round of joint exercises between the US and Philippine troops will be held from October to June, 2003, the Philippine government said earlier.
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August 12, 2002, The People's Daily, Peace Process Going on in Philippines, Prospect Dimmed,
Despite the announcement from the US State Department that the Philippine rebel group New People's Army (PNA) is a foreign terrorist organization, the Philippine government still sticks to the peace process in a domestic dimension.
The government has kept its communication lines open to the NPA, and is ever ready to welcome it back into the fold of the law, the��presidential palace said on Sunday, adding that it even designated two additional negotiators lately, showing its sincerity to pursue the peace process with the front.
Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said that the withdrawal of the rebel side from the peace talks will be an "unfortunate turn of events," emphasizing that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ordered to "keep the communication lines open."
The government announced on Friday to resume the peace talks in late August or early September.
The US State Department released a press statement in Manila on Saturday, tagging the NPA as among the foreign terrorist organizations. US Secretary of State Colin Powell said in the statement that the decision was made after an exhaustive review of the group's violent activities.
The group "strongly opposes any U.S. presence in the Philippines and has killed U.S. citizens there (in the Philippines)," he said, adding that "the group has also killed, injured, or kidnapped numerous Philippine citizens."
Earlier last week, Arroyo ordered the redeployment of government troops from Mindanao in the south to other parts of the country, aiming to take defensive positions in areas perceived to be threatened by the NPA elements. Media reports said with military aid from the US, the government may have the NPA as its next target.
As a response, Jose Maria Sison, the political leader of the NPA who self-exiled in 1987, announced on Tuesday in the Netherlands that the NPA would intensify its assaults against government installations to divert the military's attention. He also called on the Muslim separatist insurgent groups to simultaneously launch attacks on the government.
Bunye said those troops previously pulled out from the north and central were actually assigned to Mindanao at the height of the fight against the Abu Sayyaf group there. Now that the soldiers have already effectively reduced the threat posed by the group, they can be redeployed to their original assignments.
Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Lauro Baja Jr., however, said the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has not received any official transmittal from American officials on the matter. The DFA and other concerned agencies would discuss and come up with an official position once the official announcement comes.
The Department of National Defense (DND), likewise, refuses to comment on the US announcement, saying it has to wait for formal communication from the DFA regarding the issue. Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes is now in the United States to discuss security relations with his counterpart US Secretary of National Defense Donald Rumsfeld.
Reyes had been engaging Sison in a word war as an offshoot of the military's shifting of focus. Sison said on Thursday that he did not order to wage attacks anew, but only to give a political analysis on the insurgence situation. Reyes, for his part, said Sison retracted his order because he might be ejected by the Netherlands government for his activities.
Despite the silence from the DFA and DND, the Philippine military on Sunday welcomed the US decision. Its spokesperson Brigade General Eduardo Purificacion said the US decision leaves no choice for the NPA but to resume negotiations.
Peace talks between the government and the NPA, which has operated since 1969, were called off early last year after the NPA elements allegedly assassinated two congressmen for their "betrayal against the people." But "back-channel" contacts between the two sides have been ongoing since.
As of the first quarter of 2002, NPA members numbered 11,094, or 836 lower than at the end of 2001. However, the government said the NPA-affected villages rose from 1,969 last year to 2,262 as ofJuly.
The government hopes the resumption of peace talks would lead to a peace accord. The two parties even had not placed any conditions on the start of the discussions.
Sison said that NPA would resume talk only if it was not compelled to accept the government's legal and constitutional system as what is stated in the Hague Joint Declaration signed between two sides in 1992.
The government, on the other hand, insisted that its position will be based on the Constitution of the Philippines and not on that of the NDF's version.
War between the two sides will continue, in both words and bullets; also to continue is excessively prolonged peace process, in an either official, or backdoor way. With so big a discrepancy at the very beginning, the new round of peace talks would hardly avoid being in vain.
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October 14, 2002, The People's Daily, Joint Philippines-US Military Exercises Start Monday,
August 10, 2002, The People's Daily, US: Philippine "New People's Army" Terrorist Group,
The US State Department distributed a statement in Manila Saturday putting the Philippine rebel group New People's Army (NPA) on its list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations.
In the statement, US Secretary of State Colin Powell said the decision was made after an exhaustive review of the group's violent activities.
He said the group "strongly opposed any U.S. presence in the Philippines and has killed U.S. citizens there (in the Philippines)."
Powell said, "the group has also killed, injured, or kidnapped numerous Philippine citizens, including government officials."
As a result, the U.S. will be imposing measures against the terrorist group, including the blockade by US financial institution of assets held by the group and deportation of all individuals or groups related with the NPA from all the US territories.
At the beginning of this week, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ordered the Armed Forces to redeploy its troops from Zamboanga and Basilan, where the Abu Sayyaf operates, to areas where there is a resurgence of NPA activities.
Media reports said after cracking down the Abu Sayyaf bandit group with the help of US troops, the Philippine government's next target is likely to be the NPA.
Peace talks between the government and the NPA, which has operated since 1969, were called off last year after the NPA assassinated two Congressmen.
Jose Maria Sison, the exiled political leader of the NPA announced from the Netherlands on Tuesday in response to Arroyo's redeployment of armed forces that the NPA would intensify its assaults against government troops. It would be using "both basic and special operations," such as "destroying electrical towers and lines," to divert the attention of the military, show the strength of the guerrillas and cause "calculated" economic disruption.
He also called on the Muslim separatist insurgent groups to simultaneously launch attacks on the government.
However, Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye said on Wednesday that Arroyo did not declare an "all-out war" against the NPA, but rather a redeployment of the military to outlying communities to ensure peace and order.
The government also announced on Friday resumption of peace talks with the NPA in late August or September.
Over 1,000 US troops trained and assisted Filipino soldiers in the six-month joint exercises ended on July 31 to combat the Abu Sayyaf which was also listed as a foreign terrorist group by the US government. Over hundred Abu Sayyaf members were reportedly killed during the exercises.
A new round of joint exercises between the US and Philippine troops will be held from October to June, 2003, the Philippine government said earlier.
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August 12, 2002, The People's Daily, Peace Process Going on in Philippines, Prospect Dimmed,
Despite the announcement from the US State Department that the Philippine rebel group New People's Army (PNA) is a foreign terrorist organization, the Philippine government still sticks to the peace process in a domestic dimension.
The government has kept its communication lines open to the NPA, and is ever ready to welcome it back into the fold of the law, the��presidential palace said on Sunday, adding that it even designated two additional negotiators lately, showing its sincerity to pursue the peace process with the front.
Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said that the withdrawal of the rebel side from the peace talks will be an "unfortunate turn of events," emphasizing that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ordered to "keep the communication lines open."
The government announced on Friday to resume the peace talks in late August or early September.
The US State Department released a press statement in Manila on Saturday, tagging the NPA as among the foreign terrorist organizations. US Secretary of State Colin Powell said in the statement that the decision was made after an exhaustive review of the group's violent activities.
The group "strongly opposes any U.S. presence in the Philippines and has killed U.S. citizens there (in the Philippines)," he said, adding that "the group has also killed, injured, or kidnapped numerous Philippine citizens."
Earlier last week, Arroyo ordered the redeployment of government troops from Mindanao in the south to other parts of the country, aiming to take defensive positions in areas perceived to be threatened by the NPA elements. Media reports said with military aid from the US, the government may have the NPA as its next target.
As a response, Jose Maria Sison, the political leader of the NPA who self-exiled in 1987, announced on Tuesday in the Netherlands that the NPA would intensify its assaults against government installations to divert the military's attention. He also called on the Muslim separatist insurgent groups to simultaneously launch attacks on the government.
Bunye said those troops previously pulled out from the north and central were actually assigned to Mindanao at the height of the fight against the Abu Sayyaf group there. Now that the soldiers have already effectively reduced the threat posed by the group, they can be redeployed to their original assignments.
Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Lauro Baja Jr., however, said the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has not received any official transmittal from American officials on the matter. The DFA and other concerned agencies would discuss and come up with an official position once the official announcement comes.
The Department of National Defense (DND), likewise, refuses to comment on the US announcement, saying it has to wait for formal communication from the DFA regarding the issue. Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes is now in the United States to discuss security relations with his counterpart US Secretary of National Defense Donald Rumsfeld.
Reyes had been engaging Sison in a word war as an offshoot of the military's shifting of focus. Sison said on Thursday that he did not order to wage attacks anew, but only to give a political analysis on the insurgence situation. Reyes, for his part, said Sison retracted his order because he might be ejected by the Netherlands government for his activities.
Despite the silence from the DFA and DND, the Philippine military on Sunday welcomed the US decision. Its spokesperson Brigade General Eduardo Purificacion said the US decision leaves no choice for the NPA but to resume negotiations.
Peace talks between the government and the NPA, which has operated since 1969, were called off early last year after the NPA elements allegedly assassinated two congressmen for their "betrayal against the people." But "back-channel" contacts between the two sides have been ongoing since.
As of the first quarter of 2002, NPA members numbered 11,094, or 836 lower than at the end of 2001. However, the government said the NPA-affected villages rose from 1,969 last year to 2,262 as ofJuly.
The government hopes the resumption of peace talks would lead to a peace accord. The two parties even had not placed any conditions on the start of the discussions.
Sison said that NPA would resume talk only if it was not compelled to accept the government's legal and constitutional system as what is stated in the Hague Joint Declaration signed between two sides in 1992.
The government, on the other hand, insisted that its position will be based on the Constitution of the Philippines and not on that of the NDF's version.
War between the two sides will continue, in both words and bullets; also to continue is excessively prolonged peace process, in an either official, or backdoor way. With so big a discrepancy at the very beginning, the new round of peace talks would hardly avoid being in vain.
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August 21, 2002, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf Takes Eight Hostages in Southern Philippines: Report,
Eight Filipinos have been held hostage anew on the southern Philippine island of Jolo, which the local authority said on Wednesday it could be associated with the Abu Sayyaf kidnap-for-ransom group.
Five women and three men, believed to be door-to-door pharmaceutical sales representatives, were taken away on Tuesday by armed men in Patikul town, the ABS-CBN news channel quoted vice town mayor Ismon Suhuri as saying, adding that the kidnappers were led by Abu Sayyaf leader Radulan Sahiron.
Police chief Superintendent Ahiron Ajirim confirmed the kidnapping, stressing that only Sahiron's sect was known to operate in Patikul town. Jolo island is a major lair of the notorious extremist group.
The incident took place shortly after members of the Philippine Army earlier shelled a suspected hideout of the Abu Sayyaf group in the Patikul town. The local authority is still trying to establish the real identity of the kidnappers.
The incident, if true, would be the first attack of the bandit group after a six-month Philippine-US joint military exercise ended in the south on July 31. The war game was targeting at these bandits, and succeeded in recovering a female American hostage and killing Abu Sayyaf, spokesman and key leader of the group.
Philippine Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes made a phone call on Wednesday morning to the Armed Forces of the Philippines Southern Command in Zamboanga city to inquire about the incident. He said troops have been sent out to pursue the kidnappers.
The Abu Sayyaf is noted for their kidnapping activities against local Christians and foreigners. It was widely feared that the group would kidnap more hostages as human shields to deter military's pursuit operations.
Eight Filipinos have been held hostage anew on the southern Philippine island of Jolo, which the local authority said on Wednesday it could be associated with the Abu Sayyaf kidnap-for-ransom group.
Five women and three men, believed to be door-to-door pharmaceutical sales representatives, were taken away on Tuesday by armed men in Patikul town, the ABS-CBN news channel quoted vice town mayor Ismon Suhuri as saying, adding that the kidnappers were led by Abu Sayyaf leader Radulan Sahiron.
Police chief Superintendent Ahiron Ajirim confirmed the kidnapping, stressing that only Sahiron's sect was known to operate in Patikul town. Jolo island is a major lair of the notorious extremist group.
The incident took place shortly after members of the Philippine Army earlier shelled a suspected hideout of the Abu Sayyaf group in the Patikul town. The local authority is still trying to establish the real identity of the kidnappers.
The incident, if true, would be the first attack of the bandit group after a six-month Philippine-US joint military exercise ended in the south on July 31. The war game was targeting at these bandits, and succeeded in recovering a female American hostage and killing Abu Sayyaf, spokesman and key leader of the group.
Philippine Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes made a phone call on Wednesday morning to the Armed Forces of the Philippines Southern Command in Zamboanga city to inquire about the incident. He said troops have been sent out to pursue the kidnappers.
The Abu Sayyaf is noted for their kidnapping activities against local Christians and foreigners. It was widely feared that the group would kidnap more hostages as human shields to deter military's pursuit operations.
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August 22, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine Kidnappers Describe Beheading Hostages as "Jihad",
A letter supposedly left by suspected Abu Sayyaf members beside the head of one of their victims described as "jihad" the action of beheading their hostages who don't believe in Allah.
"A letter was found from one of the heads warning that those who do not believe in Allah will suffer the same fate. They said what they did was Jihad," Brigadier General Romeo Tolentino, the military chief in the southern Philippine island of Jolo was quoted as saying by the Philippine Daily Inquirer online news on Thursday.
Two of the six hostages who were abducted by suspected Abu Sayyaf bandits Tuesday were beheaded by their abductors. Their heads were found separately in a market in Jolo on Wednesday night and early morning of Thursday.
The six kidnapping victims were cosmetics salesmen working for the famous brand Avon. They were allegedly kidnapped by Muin Maulod Sahiron, a nephew of Abu Sayyaf leader Radullan Sahiron, and his followers while they were aboard a public utility jeepney.
The two beheaded, Lemuel Mantolo and Lionel Manticwere, were identified as Jehovah's Witnesses preachers by their colleagues.
There were two Muslims seized together with the six Avon salesmen, but they were freed unharmed.
The military was again caught by surprise after the abduction owing to the fact that the mobility of the Abu Sayyaf bandits was constricted after thousands of government troops have been deployed to Sulu to crush Abu Sayyaf forces.
Armed Forces of the Philippines spokesman General Eduardo Purificacion on Thursday pointed out that there are a number of lawless elements going around in Sulu that could have perpetrated the kidnapping, the Philippine Star online news reported.
_____________________________________August 22, 2002, The People's Daily, Philippine Kidnappers Describe Beheading Hostages as "Jihad",
A letter supposedly left by suspected Abu Sayyaf members beside the head of one of their victims described as "jihad" the action of beheading their hostages who don't believe in Allah.
"A letter was found from one of the heads warning that those who do not believe in Allah will suffer the same fate. They said what they did was Jihad," Brigadier General Romeo Tolentino, the military chief in the southern Philippine island of Jolo was quoted as saying by the Philippine Daily Inquirer online news on Thursday.
Two of the six hostages who were abducted by suspected Abu Sayyaf bandits Tuesday were beheaded by their abductors. Their heads were found separately in a market in Jolo on Wednesday night and early morning of Thursday.
The six kidnapping victims were cosmetics salesmen working for the famous brand Avon. They were allegedly kidnapped by Muin Maulod Sahiron, a nephew of Abu Sayyaf leader Radullan Sahiron, and his followers while they were aboard a public utility jeepney.
The two beheaded, Lemuel Mantolo and Lionel Manticwere, were identified as Jehovah's Witnesses preachers by their colleagues.
There were two Muslims seized together with the six Avon salesmen, but they were freed unharmed.
The military was again caught by surprise after the abduction owing to the fact that the mobility of the Abu Sayyaf bandits was constricted after thousands of government troops have been deployed to Sulu to crush Abu Sayyaf forces.
Armed Forces of the Philippines spokesman General Eduardo Purificacion on Thursday pointed out that there are a number of lawless elements going around in Sulu that could have perpetrated the kidnapping, the Philippine Star online news reported.
A total of 308 members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), the biggest separatist group in the Philippines, have given themselves up under a government amnesty over the past few weeks, the military said Thursday.
Among those who surrendered were four senior MILF commanders, military spokesman Major Johnny Macanas said, adding that these MILF defectors also turned in 230 pieces of firearms.
Most of these rebels deserted their commanders in the front-lines during peace negotiations with the government, and many of them have also applied to join a civilian paramilitary force controlled by the army.
"We will teach the rebels to be responsible citizens. They are tired of war and they want to help the government to bring about peace in the south," Macanas told reporters.
The 12,000-strong MILF has been fighting for an independent Islamic state in the southern Philippines since 1978 when the group broke away from the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), a larger separatist group in the south.
The MILF was not included in a peace pact that the MNLF and the government inked in 1996. President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo launched peace talks with the MILF soon after she took over the presidency in early 2001, which resulted in an ceasefire early this year.
Among those who surrendered were four senior MILF commanders, military spokesman Major Johnny Macanas said, adding that these MILF defectors also turned in 230 pieces of firearms.
Most of these rebels deserted their commanders in the front-lines during peace negotiations with the government, and many of them have also applied to join a civilian paramilitary force controlled by the army.
"We will teach the rebels to be responsible citizens. They are tired of war and they want to help the government to bring about peace in the south," Macanas told reporters.
The 12,000-strong MILF has been fighting for an independent Islamic state in the southern Philippines since 1978 when the group broke away from the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), a larger separatist group in the south.
The MILF was not included in a peace pact that the MNLF and the government inked in 1996. President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo launched peace talks with the MILF soon after she took over the presidency in early 2001, which resulted in an ceasefire early this year.
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October 14, 2002, The People's Daily, Joint Philippines-US Military Exercises Start Monday,
A new round of Philippines-US joint military exercises will start Monday in the northern Philippines as scheduled, military officials said Sunday.
About 600 US troops arrived Sunday at the former American naval base in Subic Bay, some 70 km north of Manila, from a military base in Japan, joining another 200 American servicemen who arrived a day earlier at the nearby former US Clark airbase.
The joint war games, dubbed Talon Vision-02, will be held from Oct. 14 to Oct. 26 at Clark and other areas on the main northern island of Luzon, said Major Allan Ballesteros of the Clark-based Philippine Air Force.
The Americans have brought with them four C-130 cargo planes and six CH-53 Super Stallion and Cobra attack helicopters.
Both Philippine and American officials said earlier that the exercises will go on despite a bomb attack in the southern city of Zamboanga on Oct. 2 that killed one US soldier and three Filipino civilians and injured more than 20 others, including a US serviceman.
The American casualties are among some 260 US servicemen who stayed behind to finish construction works after six-month joint military exercises in the southern Philippines ended in July, in which over 1,000 US troops participated to help the local military hunt down Abu Sayyaf bandits.
Authorities suspected the bomb attack was carried out by the Abu Sayyaf, which had alleged links with the al-Qaeda network of Osama bin Laden, the suspected mastermind of the attacks on the United States on Sept. 11 last year.
The two countries had also conducted several rounds of joint war games in Luzon earlier this year.
October 17, 2002, The People's Daily, Three Killed, Dozens Hurt in Philippine Mall Blasts,
At least three people were killed and dozens wounded when bombs ripped through a shopping center in the largely Christian city of Zamboanga in the southern Philippines on Thursday, officials said.
No group has claimed responsibility but officials said they suspected the blasts were the work of radicals fighting for an Islamic state in the south of the Roman Catholic nation.
At least 55 people were injured.
"Three people have died and 47 were brought in for treatment in one hospital I visited. There are also eight wounded in another hospital," Zamboanga Mayor Maria Clara Lobregat told Reuters by phone.
The explosions occurred amid a heightened security alert across the Philippines after deadly bomb attacks on the Indonesian resort island of Bali last weekend in which more than 180 people were killed and hundreds injured.
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About 600 US troops arrived Sunday at the former American naval base in Subic Bay, some 70 km north of Manila, from a military base in Japan, joining another 200 American servicemen who arrived a day earlier at the nearby former US Clark airbase.
The joint war games, dubbed Talon Vision-02, will be held from Oct. 14 to Oct. 26 at Clark and other areas on the main northern island of Luzon, said Major Allan Ballesteros of the Clark-based Philippine Air Force.
The Americans have brought with them four C-130 cargo planes and six CH-53 Super Stallion and Cobra attack helicopters.
Both Philippine and American officials said earlier that the exercises will go on despite a bomb attack in the southern city of Zamboanga on Oct. 2 that killed one US soldier and three Filipino civilians and injured more than 20 others, including a US serviceman.
The American casualties are among some 260 US servicemen who stayed behind to finish construction works after six-month joint military exercises in the southern Philippines ended in July, in which over 1,000 US troops participated to help the local military hunt down Abu Sayyaf bandits.
Authorities suspected the bomb attack was carried out by the Abu Sayyaf, which had alleged links with the al-Qaeda network of Osama bin Laden, the suspected mastermind of the attacks on the United States on Sept. 11 last year.
The two countries had also conducted several rounds of joint war games in Luzon earlier this year.
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October 17, 2002, The People's Daily, 5 Killed, 144 Injured in Blasts in Southern Philippines,
2 Bombs Explode in Southern Philippines
October 17, 2002, The People's Daily, 5 Killed, 144 Injured in Blasts in Southern Philippines,
2 Bombs Explode in Southern Philippines
Eleven Turkish and Pakistani sailors were invited for questioning in connection with the twin bomb blasts in the southern Philippine city of Zamboanga on Thursday, which killed at least five and wounded 144 others.
But Police Chief Inspector Jose Bayani Gucela refused to give details, only said that the foreigners are crew members of a ship arriving in the city on Oct. 8, the Philippine News Agency reported.
The vessel was reportedly carrying salts. Police would like to find out if the presence of the Turkish and Pakistani nationals was coincidental with the bomb explosions.
Other reports said 16 people were invited for questioning on the bombings. Three foreigners were among them.
Two bombs exploded separately at Shop-O-Rama and Shopping Central, two favorite shopping malls in crowded business areas in Zamboanga.
The first one exploded at around 11:30 a.m. (0330 GMT) at the bags and luggage section of Shop-O-Rama. The blast was followed at 12:05 p.m. (0405 GMT) by the second explosion at the Shoppers Central.
Two more bombs were discovered and defused later by police explosive experts in two other different locations in the city.
The bomb explosions just occurred as the incoming Armed Forces Southern Command (SouthCom) chief, Lieutenant General Narciso Abaya, was receiving formally his command at the SouthCom Headquarters in Zamboanga from outgoing chief Lieutenant General Ernesto Carolina. Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes attended the turnover rites.
The military has reportedly tagged the Abu Sayyaf terrorist group which allegedly has links with the al-Qaeda terrorist network, as the one behind the bombings.
Thursday's bombings were the third of such kind of incidents in the southern Philippines in October. Six people were killed in a bombing at a bus terminal in Kidapawan city of North Cotabato on Oct. 10, days after three persons including an American soldier were killed in a bomb explosion in front of a Karaoke bar in Zamboanga on Oct. 2.
But Police Chief Inspector Jose Bayani Gucela refused to give details, only said that the foreigners are crew members of a ship arriving in the city on Oct. 8, the Philippine News Agency reported.
The vessel was reportedly carrying salts. Police would like to find out if the presence of the Turkish and Pakistani nationals was coincidental with the bomb explosions.
Other reports said 16 people were invited for questioning on the bombings. Three foreigners were among them.
Two bombs exploded separately at Shop-O-Rama and Shopping Central, two favorite shopping malls in crowded business areas in Zamboanga.
The first one exploded at around 11:30 a.m. (0330 GMT) at the bags and luggage section of Shop-O-Rama. The blast was followed at 12:05 p.m. (0405 GMT) by the second explosion at the Shoppers Central.
Two more bombs were discovered and defused later by police explosive experts in two other different locations in the city.
The bomb explosions just occurred as the incoming Armed Forces Southern Command (SouthCom) chief, Lieutenant General Narciso Abaya, was receiving formally his command at the SouthCom Headquarters in Zamboanga from outgoing chief Lieutenant General Ernesto Carolina. Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes attended the turnover rites.
The military has reportedly tagged the Abu Sayyaf terrorist group which allegedly has links with the al-Qaeda terrorist network, as the one behind the bombings.
Thursday's bombings were the third of such kind of incidents in the southern Philippines in October. Six people were killed in a bombing at a bus terminal in Kidapawan city of North Cotabato on Oct. 10, days after three persons including an American soldier were killed in a bomb explosion in front of a Karaoke bar in Zamboanga on Oct. 2.
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October 17, 2002, The People's Daily, Three Killed, Dozens Hurt in Philippine Mall Blasts,
At least three people were killed and dozens wounded when bombs ripped through a shopping center in the largely Christian city of Zamboanga in the southern Philippines on Thursday, officials said.
No group has claimed responsibility but officials said they suspected the blasts were the work of radicals fighting for an Islamic state in the south of the Roman Catholic nation.
At least 55 people were injured.
"Three people have died and 47 were brought in for treatment in one hospital I visited. There are also eight wounded in another hospital," Zamboanga Mayor Maria Clara Lobregat told Reuters by phone.
The explosions occurred amid a heightened security alert across the Philippines after deadly bomb attacks on the Indonesian resort island of Bali last weekend in which more than 180 people were killed and hundreds injured.
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October 17, 2002, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf Leader Wanted by US Voices Intent to Surrender,
A ranking Abu Sayyaf leader with one-million-US-dollar reward on his head by US government, voiced his willingness to surrender, and help the local government restore peace and order in war-torn Basilan island in the south, according to media reports.
Hamsiraji Sali, the most wanted bandit leader, confirmed that the Army intelligence officers have been making efforts to effect his surrender. "I want to be of help to the president because just like our mothers, we could see her already tired of the situation here in Basilan," Sali said.
"It (planned surrender of Sali) is a good development. If he is really sincere in surrendering, then we would arrange for it but he has to face the cases for his crimes committed against the people," military spokesman Eduardo Purificacion said, adding, "He should be given a full trial as all Filipino citizens are entitled to."
Sali is one of five Abu Sayyaf leaders whom the U.S. had put upa five-million-dollar reward for their capture and eventual prosecution. The other four are Khadaffy Janjalani, Abu Sabaya, Isnilon Hapilon and Abu Solaiman.
Sali, however, said he would not surrender to former military Southern Command chief Lieutenant General Ernesto Carolina, who is also the incoming deputy chief of staff of the military.
Sali, who is believed to have kidnapped and murdered several US citizens, reportedly insisted that the troops retreat from Basilan,a lair of the Abu Sayyaf group, before he finally turns himself into the authorities.
The Abu Sayyaf is a small rebel group notorious for its kidnapping raids in the southern Philippines. They have been branded a terrorist group by Manila and Washington with links to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network.
A ranking Abu Sayyaf leader with one-million-US-dollar reward on his head by US government, voiced his willingness to surrender, and help the local government restore peace and order in war-torn Basilan island in the south, according to media reports.
Hamsiraji Sali, the most wanted bandit leader, confirmed that the Army intelligence officers have been making efforts to effect his surrender. "I want to be of help to the president because just like our mothers, we could see her already tired of the situation here in Basilan," Sali said.
"It (planned surrender of Sali) is a good development. If he is really sincere in surrendering, then we would arrange for it but he has to face the cases for his crimes committed against the people," military spokesman Eduardo Purificacion said, adding, "He should be given a full trial as all Filipino citizens are entitled to."
Sali is one of five Abu Sayyaf leaders whom the U.S. had put upa five-million-dollar reward for their capture and eventual prosecution. The other four are Khadaffy Janjalani, Abu Sabaya, Isnilon Hapilon and Abu Solaiman.
Sali, however, said he would not surrender to former military Southern Command chief Lieutenant General Ernesto Carolina, who is also the incoming deputy chief of staff of the military.
Sali, who is believed to have kidnapped and murdered several US citizens, reportedly insisted that the troops retreat from Basilan,a lair of the Abu Sayyaf group, before he finally turns himself into the authorities.
The Abu Sayyaf is a small rebel group notorious for its kidnapping raids in the southern Philippines. They have been branded a terrorist group by Manila and Washington with links to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network.
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October 20, 2002, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf Leader Arrested in Manila,
One of the top Abu Sayyaf group leaders involved in kidnapping foreigners has been arrested in Metro Manila, the police announced Saturday.
Mark Bolkerin Gumbahale was caught Thursday by police intelligence agents in Taguig, Metro Manila after a civilian asset reported to police his hideout in the area, the Philippine News Agency quoted national police chief Hermogenes Ebdane as saying.
Gumbahale, involved in kidnapping 21 mostly western tourists in Malaysia's resort island of Sipadan in April 2000, has a bounty of 5 million pesos (about 94,000 US dollars) on his head put up by the government.
Police also said he participated in a series of bombings in Metro Manila on Dec. 30, 2000 that killed more than 20 people.
Gumbahale was said to be one of the close henchmen of slain Abu Sayyaf spokesman Abu Sabaya, who was killed during a sea encounter with hunting government soldiers in the south in June this year.
Thousands of government troops have been deployed in the south hunting down Abu Sayyaf bandits, allegedly linked to the al-Qaeda network of Osama bin Laden, the suspected mastermind of the terror attacks on the United States on Sept. 11 last year.
October 20, 2002, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf Leader Arrested in Manila,
One of the top Abu Sayyaf group leaders involved in kidnapping foreigners has been arrested in Metro Manila, the police announced Saturday.
Mark Bolkerin Gumbahale was caught Thursday by police intelligence agents in Taguig, Metro Manila after a civilian asset reported to police his hideout in the area, the Philippine News Agency quoted national police chief Hermogenes Ebdane as saying.
Gumbahale, involved in kidnapping 21 mostly western tourists in Malaysia's resort island of Sipadan in April 2000, has a bounty of 5 million pesos (about 94,000 US dollars) on his head put up by the government.
Police also said he participated in a series of bombings in Metro Manila on Dec. 30, 2000 that killed more than 20 people.
Gumbahale was said to be one of the close henchmen of slain Abu Sayyaf spokesman Abu Sabaya, who was killed during a sea encounter with hunting government soldiers in the south in June this year.
Thousands of government troops have been deployed in the south hunting down Abu Sayyaf bandits, allegedly linked to the al-Qaeda network of Osama bin Laden, the suspected mastermind of the terror attacks on the United States on Sept. 11 last year.
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December 19, 2002, The People's Daily, Seven Killed in Southern Philippine Massacre,
Seven local residents were killed in a massacre taking place in the southern Philippine city of Zamboanga on Thursday morning.
The victims were identified as Juliet Tan and her three sons. Also killed were two house helpers and an identified individual, the ABS-CBN on-line news reported.
Neighbors of the victims said they heard screams coming from Tan's house but disregarded the commotion. The incident was reported to the police only when the family's driver arrived and saw the blood-soaked bodies inside the house.
Initial investigation pointed to a certain domestic helper as the suspect in the crime. He worked for the Tans but reportedly disputed with the family over wage settlement. The suspect left the house immediately after the incident, and fled to a neighbor province.
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December 19, 2002, The People's Daily, Seven Killed in Southern Philippine Massacre,
Seven local residents were killed in a massacre taking place in the southern Philippine city of Zamboanga on Thursday morning.
The victims were identified as Juliet Tan and her three sons. Also killed were two house helpers and an identified individual, the ABS-CBN on-line news reported.
Neighbors of the victims said they heard screams coming from Tan's house but disregarded the commotion. The incident was reported to the police only when the family's driver arrived and saw the blood-soaked bodies inside the house.
Initial investigation pointed to a certain domestic helper as the suspect in the crime. He worked for the Tans but reportedly disputed with the family over wage settlement. The suspect left the house immediately after the incident, and fled to a neighbor province.
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December 25, 2002, The People's Daily, Bomb Blast in Southern Philippines Kills 13 People,
A Christmas Eve bomb attack by suspected Islamic militants killed at least 13 people and wounded 12 in the southern Philippines, the military said.
Tuesday's bomb went off near the home of Mayor Saudie Ampatuan in Datu Piang town in Maguindanao province, said army spokesman Maj. Julieto Ando.
He said the death toll rose after authorities counted all the dead from hospitals in different towns.
Ampatuan later died of injuries to his head and abdomen. Among those killed were a town councilor, the treasurer and a bodyguard,Ando said. The others were not immediately identified, Ando added.
Ando, Army's Sixth Infantry Division spokesman, said initial investigation revealed that a homemade bomb, rigged from a mortar device, exploded as the mayor was sponsoring a thanks-giving partyfor the death of a relative at his compound.
Norie Unas, spokesman of the Ampatuan family, has called for sobriety among supporters of the clan, pointing out that the bombing has nothing to do with the death of the mayor's youngest brother, Hofer, on Sunday in Cotabato city.
Hofer was gunned down during a shooting with a son of a former Cotabato city councilor and his friend at a disco club. Nearly an hour later, armed men shot dead the former city councilor and his nephew at a hospital where his injured son and the family friend were brought.
"This kind of problem cannot be solved with another problem for the motive is not yet clear as investigation is still ongoing," Unas said, referring to the bombing incident on Tuesday.
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A Christmas Eve bomb attack by suspected Islamic militants killed at least 13 people and wounded 12 in the southern Philippines, the military said.
Tuesday's bomb went off near the home of Mayor Saudie Ampatuan in Datu Piang town in Maguindanao province, said army spokesman Maj. Julieto Ando.
He said the death toll rose after authorities counted all the dead from hospitals in different towns.
Ampatuan later died of injuries to his head and abdomen. Among those killed were a town councilor, the treasurer and a bodyguard,Ando said. The others were not immediately identified, Ando added.
Ando, Army's Sixth Infantry Division spokesman, said initial investigation revealed that a homemade bomb, rigged from a mortar device, exploded as the mayor was sponsoring a thanks-giving partyfor the death of a relative at his compound.
Norie Unas, spokesman of the Ampatuan family, has called for sobriety among supporters of the clan, pointing out that the bombing has nothing to do with the death of the mayor's youngest brother, Hofer, on Sunday in Cotabato city.
Hofer was gunned down during a shooting with a son of a former Cotabato city councilor and his friend at a disco club. Nearly an hour later, armed men shot dead the former city councilor and his nephew at a hospital where his injured son and the family friend were brought.
"This kind of problem cannot be solved with another problem for the motive is not yet clear as investigation is still ongoing," Unas said, referring to the bombing incident on Tuesday.
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At least seven people were killed on the New Year's Eve in a blast in the southern Philippine province of Sultan Kudarat.
More than 30 others were injured when someone lobbed a grenade into a row of stalls selling firecrackers, setting off a series of explosions, the ABS-CBN news channel reported on Wednesday.
So far no one has claimed responsibility for the incident and a manhunt has been launched for the perpetrator, the military said.
The number of fatalities may still increase because many of the injured are in serious condition.
February 17, 2003, The People's Daily, Arroyo Approves Philippine-US Joint War Game on Southern Island,
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has approved the plan to hold a Philippine-US joint military exercise in the southern island province of Sulu, a lair of the Abu Sayyaf bandit group, the presidential spokesman said Monday.
"Upon the recommendation of the secretaries of foreign affairs and national defense, the president today approved the holding of Balikatan (Shoulder to Shoulder) 03-1 in Sulu," the presidential palace quoted presidential spokesman Ignacio Bunye as saying in a statement released on Monday.
As in the Balikatan exercise held last year in Basilan, another Abu Sayyaf lair not far from Sulu, Bunye said, "The exercise will form part of the country's overall and ongoing defense and security cooperation activities with the United States, which continue to focus on increasing our ability to protect ourselves against terrorist threats."
The specific number of American soldiers and support troops and the duration of the war game will still be determined by the Philippine government in consultation with the United States, Bunye said.
As in the previous Balikatan, the introduction of civic humanitarian projects, especially in the field of basic health services, will be a significant component of the exercise.
"It is widely acknowledged that the training, advice and assistance we received in Basilan were critic factors that led to the defeat of the Abu Sayyaf in Basilan and the restoration of order and the full reestablishment of government service in the province," Bunye said.
The 6-month Balikatan 02-1 held in the southern Philippines last year was concluded with achievements including the successful recovery of an American hostage, and the killing of Abu Sabaya, spokesman and a key leader of the notorious kidnap-for-ransom group.
More than 30 others were injured when someone lobbed a grenade into a row of stalls selling firecrackers, setting off a series of explosions, the ABS-CBN news channel reported on Wednesday.
So far no one has claimed responsibility for the incident and a manhunt has been launched for the perpetrator, the military said.
The number of fatalities may still increase because many of the injured are in serious condition.
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February 17, 2003, The People's Daily, Arroyo Approves Philippine-US Joint War Game on Southern Island,
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has approved the plan to hold a Philippine-US joint military exercise in the southern island province of Sulu, a lair of the Abu Sayyaf bandit group, the presidential spokesman said Monday.
"Upon the recommendation of the secretaries of foreign affairs and national defense, the president today approved the holding of Balikatan (Shoulder to Shoulder) 03-1 in Sulu," the presidential palace quoted presidential spokesman Ignacio Bunye as saying in a statement released on Monday.
As in the Balikatan exercise held last year in Basilan, another Abu Sayyaf lair not far from Sulu, Bunye said, "The exercise will form part of the country's overall and ongoing defense and security cooperation activities with the United States, which continue to focus on increasing our ability to protect ourselves against terrorist threats."
The specific number of American soldiers and support troops and the duration of the war game will still be determined by the Philippine government in consultation with the United States, Bunye said.
As in the previous Balikatan, the introduction of civic humanitarian projects, especially in the field of basic health services, will be a significant component of the exercise.
"It is widely acknowledged that the training, advice and assistance we received in Basilan were critic factors that led to the defeat of the Abu Sayyaf in Basilan and the restoration of order and the full reestablishment of government service in the province," Bunye said.
The 6-month Balikatan 02-1 held in the southern Philippines last year was concluded with achievements including the successful recovery of an American hostage, and the killing of Abu Sabaya, spokesman and a key leader of the notorious kidnap-for-ransom group.
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Diigo, October 10, 2003, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf holding hostages abducted in Borneo: report,
The Abu Sayyaf kidnap-for-ransom group in the southern Philippines might be holding the hostages abducted from a beach resort in Sabah state in eastern Malaysia, the ABS-CBN on-line news reported Thursday.
The unidentified source was quoted as saying that Jambuladin Natukan, a pirate based in Sabah, led nine others in the abduction of six persons, including three Indonesians and three Filipinos at the Borneo Paradise Resort on Sunday night.
From Sabah, the six were brought to the hinterlands of Patikul town, Sulu province in southern Philippines, the source said, adding that Malaysian pirates still maintain ties with the Abu Sayyaf.
Natukan was reportedly trained in a field camp of Moro National Liberation Front, a former rebel group in southern Philippines which signed a peace agreement with the government in 1996. Abu Sayyaf leader and spokesman Abu Sabaya also trained together with Natukan.
The naval forces of Malaysia and the Philippines have stepped up security on border areas. So far there has been no demand for ransom, said the source, adding that the abduction was meant to embarrass the Philippine government ahead of a visit by US President George W. Bush to the country.
The Abu Sayyaf kidnap-for-ransom group in the southern Philippines might be holding the hostages abducted from a beach resort in Sabah state in eastern Malaysia, the ABS-CBN on-line news reported Thursday.
The unidentified source was quoted as saying that Jambuladin Natukan, a pirate based in Sabah, led nine others in the abduction of six persons, including three Indonesians and three Filipinos at the Borneo Paradise Resort on Sunday night.
From Sabah, the six were brought to the hinterlands of Patikul town, Sulu province in southern Philippines, the source said, adding that Malaysian pirates still maintain ties with the Abu Sayyaf.
Natukan was reportedly trained in a field camp of Moro National Liberation Front, a former rebel group in southern Philippines which signed a peace agreement with the government in 1996. Abu Sayyaf leader and spokesman Abu Sabaya also trained together with Natukan.
The naval forces of Malaysia and the Philippines have stepped up security on border areas. So far there has been no demand for ransom, said the source, adding that the abduction was meant to embarrass the Philippine government ahead of a visit by US President George W. Bush to the country.
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December 8, 2003, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf leader captured in southern Philippines,
One of the top leaders of the notorious Abu Sayyaf kidnap-for-ransom group was captured in the southern Philippines on Sunday, the military said.
Ghalib Andang, alias Commander Robot, the leader of the Abu Sayyaf faction in the southern Jolo island, was captured in Indanan town in the island at around 7:30 p.m. (1130 GMT) Sunday, Armed Forces Public Information Office chief Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Lucero said.
Details of Andang's fall are yet to be released.
Andang and his aide Mujib Susukan were held responsible for kidnapping 21 mostly European tourists from the Sipadan resort island in Malaysia and taking them to Jolo in April 2000. All the hostages were rescued or freed allegedly after huge ransom was paid.
The Abu Sayyaf was branded by both Washington and Manila as a terrorist group with links to Osama bin laden's al-Qaeda network after the terror attacks in the United States on Sept. 11, 2001. The United States dispatched some 1,000 troops to the southern Philippines last year to help the local military neutralize the group.
December 8, 2003, The People's Daily, Abu Sayyaf leader captured in southern Philippines,
One of the top leaders of the notorious Abu Sayyaf kidnap-for-ransom group was captured in the southern Philippines on Sunday, the military said.
Ghalib Andang, alias Commander Robot, the leader of the Abu Sayyaf faction in the southern Jolo island, was captured in Indanan town in the island at around 7:30 p.m. (1130 GMT) Sunday, Armed Forces Public Information Office chief Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Lucero said.
Details of Andang's fall are yet to be released.
Andang and his aide Mujib Susukan were held responsible for kidnapping 21 mostly European tourists from the Sipadan resort island in Malaysia and taking them to Jolo in April 2000. All the hostages were rescued or freed allegedly after huge ransom was paid.
The Abu Sayyaf was branded by both Washington and Manila as a terrorist group with links to Osama bin laden's al-Qaeda network after the terror attacks in the United States on Sept. 11, 2001. The United States dispatched some 1,000 troops to the southern Philippines last year to help the local military neutralize the group.
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