Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Officials get conflicting reports on Abu Sayyaf leadership (8:55 p.m.)
MANILA -- The Philippine military has received conflicting reports over whether an al-Qaeda-linked terror group has replaced its leader, killed in a clash with troops last year, officials said Wednesday.
The small but violent Abu Sayyaf lost its leader, Khaddafy Janjalani, in September during a clash with marines on southern Jolo island.
US-trained Philippine army special forces gunned down his presumed successor, Abu Sulaiman, on Jolo last January.
For months, military and police intelligence officials have tried to monitor whether the group, which has split into at least three factions, could appoint a leader while evading a massive US-backed offensive on Jolo and the nearby Basilan islands in the south.
Philippine army chief Lieutenant General Romeo Tolentino said rebel informers have reported that a militant, identified as Yasser Igasan, was chosen at a meeting of commanders in Jolo about two to three weeks ago to lead Abu Sayyaf militants. (AP)
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