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Monday, July 23, 2007
MILF says it is prepared for war
By Nelson C. Bagaforo
DAVAO CITY -- The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) on Sunday said it is prepared to face the military in an all-out war as it vowed not to surrender those responsible for the slaying of 14 Marine soldiers, 10 of whom were beheaded and mutilated.
Eid Kabalu, MILF spokesperson, also insisted they had nothing to do with the beheading of the 10 Marines.
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"(MILF fighters) are under order to remain in a defensive position and will fight back if fired upon...They will defend themselves to the death," Kabalu warned in a report posted in www.luwaran.com, the MILF official website.
"Our fighters in Basilan will now invoke our right to self-defense, which is God-given to anyone who is attacked right in his home...They will live and die in Basilan," he added.
He said MILF fighters in Basilan have the best military records in the entire command of the Moro front.
"Sometime in 1996, they destroyed and captured seven tanks in a span of about 14 days of confrontations. This feat had been repeated on July 10, 2007 in Ginanta, Al-Barka when MILF forces killed 23 Marines, not 14 as claimed by the government, and captured 17 high-powered firearms," Kabalu said.
Although the Moro rebels are prepared to fight, Kabalu called on the Philippine military not to make the situation in Basilan more complicated.
Armed Forces Chief of Staff Hermogenes Esperon had given the MILF until Sunday to turn over those behind the deaths of the Marines or face a military offensive.
Marine soldiers were on a search mission for kidnapped Italian priest Giancarlo Bossi on July 10 when allegedly ambushed by MILF rebels, allegedly assisted by al Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf bandits.
Bossi, who was freed Thursday, said he was never n Basilan during his 39-day ordeal.
Esperon said an all-out war is an option the government has considered after the MILF rejected demands to surrender those responsible for the mutilation.
But Kabalu denied that Moro rebels beheaded the Marines although he admitted the clashes in Tipo-Tipo town were between government and MILF forces.
He said the MILF would punish its forces found involved in the beheadings but would not turn them over to government.
"If, after investigations, MILF forces are found to be guilty, they should still be turned over to us for their punishment as spelled out under the ceasefire agreement," he said.
The MILF spokesman also said peace talks with the government, which have been stalled since last year over territorial disputes, are now on the verge of total collapse.
"We are prepared for any eventuality because they no longer respect the peace process," he said.
Marine spokesman Ariel Caculitan said the troops were only after those involved in the ambush and not the entire MILF.
"The targets are the perpetrators. It's about justice," Caculitan said.
Armed Forces spokesman Bartolome Bacarro insisted the deadline would not be extended.
"The message would be a reiteration of the call for the MILF to present the perpetrators of the barbaric act," Bacarro said. (Sun.Star Davao/Sunnex)
For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star Manila. (July 23, 2007 issue)
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