|
Friday, March 18, 2005
Sayyaf may bomb Catholic churches: state lawyer
By Benjamin B. Pulta
MANILA -- A government lawyer prosecuting the case against Abu Sayyaf militants warned the terror organization might be planning to bomb Catholic Churches in Metro Manila during the observance of Holy Week.
State Prosecutor Peter Medalle said he learned of this plot from an informant who called him up last Monday.
A report on the interrogation of a captured Abu Sayyaf guerilla believed involved in bomb blasts in Manila and two southern cities on February 14 said the group has trained in scuba diving to prepare for possible seaborne attacks outside the country.
Gamal Baharan, in the report obtained by The Associated Press, also said an Abu Sayyaf leader still at large, Khadaffi Janjalani, claimed to speak directly with al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden via satellite phone. It was unclear whether that was a boast by Janjalani to impress his men.
The al-Qaida-linked militants also received at least US$18,500 over the past year from suspected members of the regional terror group Jemaah Islamiyah for explosives training, added Baharan.
Four top leaders of the militant group died during an assault by police Tuesday on a Manila jail taken over by Abu Sayyaf detainees. A leader of the group has warned in a radio interview of reprisals.
Retaliatory strikes
The retaliatory strikes might be Catholic churches in Metro Manila during the celebration of Holy Week next week, said Prosecutor Medalle, who earlier said they have given repeated warnings to jail guards of the Metro Manila Rehabilitation Center (MMRC) in Taguig of the planned prison revolt.
"I am not being an alarmist. I just want our people to know this information but it should not be a cause for panic," Medalle said.
Law enforcers, he added, should not be lulled into false confidence with their successful operation to foil the bid of Abu Sayyaf leaders and members to escape from the Taguig facility.
"They (authorities) should not sit on their laurels," he said.
The prosecutor said based on the Abu Sayyaf's behavior, the terrorist group would likely stage their attack during holidays or important occasions like the Rizal Day bombing in 2000 and the bus bombing in Makati City last Valentine's Day.
Medalle said his source told him the plan to bomb Catholic churches in Metro Manila was hatched prior to the Bicutan jail incident although the death of the Abu Sayyaf leaders and members in the detention facility would likely speed up the timetable of the terrorist group.
The prosecutor said his source told him that the attack would be carried out by "sleeper" Abu Sayyaf members, who have been assigned long ago to live in urban centers, blend with the people and remain hidden until given orders to attack.
"I was told the Abu Sayyaf is already poised for the attack and it would be carried out by sleepers who were graduates from their terrorist training camp in Central Mindanao, where they have transferred their camp from Basilan," he said.
Operation shift
The planned bombing of Catholic churches, according to Medalle, was part of the Abu Sayyaf's move to shift their area of operation from the hinterlands to urban centers.
"That is why when Abu Solaiman said 'We will bring the war to you'. I know that he is not bluffing," Medalle said. Solaiman had called up radio stations to claim responsibility for the Valentine's Day blasts in behalf of his group.
Medalle's warning on the escape bid of Abu Sayyaf detainees was confirmed by two of the group's members, Gappal Bannah Asali alias Boy Negro and Angelo Trinidad alias Abu Khalil, who were arrested for the February 14 blast in Makati City.
Asali said that in December last year, Alhamser Manatad Limbong alias Kumander Kosovo, one of the Abu Sayyaf leaders slain in the jail assault, called him and requested guns and ammunitions.
Asali said he gave the guns and ammunitions to Trinidad. In a separate interview, Trinidad claimed he gave two caliber .45 pistols and boxes of ammunition to a woman who was supposed to smuggle them inside the Taguig facility.
Another suspect caught for the bomb attacks that killed eight people and wounded more than 100 others on February 14 said during interrogation that Abu Sayyaf leaders Janjalani and Solaiman, working with Jemaah Islamiyah, had initiated scuba training for seasoned guerrillas to prepare for seaborne attacks.
Baharan was told to undergo scuba training in southwestern Palawan province, the report said. He periodically received cell phone messages from Janjalani and Sulaiman "asking him how many fathoms he would be able to dive," the report said.
Bomb plot
His training was in preparation for a Jemaah Islamiyah bombing plot on unspecified targets outside the Philippines that would require "underwater operation," the report quoted him as saying.
Baharan also disclosed that Janjalani was alive, contrary to speculation he was killed in a military air strike, and said that the Abu Sayyaf chieftain claimed he communicated with bin Laden by satellite phone, the report said.
That could represent a boast by Janjalani to impress his men, and military officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they were unable to verify it.
The interrogation report said: "Subject averred that Janjalani has a direct contact to Osama bin Laden and (bin Laden's brother-in-law) Mohammed Jamal Khalifa. Janjalani is using a satellite phone in contacting both leaders. Subject further averred that bin Laden would...talk to no one except Janjalani. They conversed in Arabic."
He told interrogators that he and another militant, Khalil Trinidad, were ordered by Solaiman to bomb a bus in Manila last month to divert the military's attention from an offensive against rebels.
During a court hearing, a bus conductor identified Baharan and Trinidad as passengers who hurriedly left the bus shortly before the blast.
Both suspects pleaded innocent in court on Monday. (With AP)
| Post your experiences to the Sun.Star Graduation section. Click here. | 2005-02-24 04:52:02
mcalvo - My graduation was unforgettable to me and to my classmates. I was so drunk the night before graduation. During the ceremony i dozed to the point of snooring even when i was already standing i was half sleeping. Our dean has to call my name twice and the person behind me has to push me just to wake me up... graduations are memorable...enjoy and congratulations to all graduates!
Read more experiences |
(March 18, 2005 issue)
Write letter to the editor.Click here.
Join the Sun.Star message board.Click here. |
|
|
|
[return to top]
[home]
|
|
84 rushed to hospitals due to food poisoning