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Friday, November 16, 2007
3 suspects in Batasan blast killed in raid
MANILA –- Security forces killed three suspected Abu Sayyaf terrorists who were allegedly behind last Tuesday’s bombing at the South Wing of the Batasang Pambansa that left four people dead, including Basilan Representative Wahab Akbar, in a raid Thursday afternoon in Quezon City.
The fatalities were Redwan Idaman and his wife Saing and Abu Jandal alias Bong.
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Three other Abu Sayyaf terrorists, identified as Khaidar Awnal, Ikram Indama, and Adham Kusain, were arrested in the joint military and police operation.
Army spokesman Ernesto Torres said a member of the Philippine National Police (PNP) Special Action Force was wounded in the incident.
Torres said members of the Army’s Intelligence Security Group (ISG), PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG), and PNP Special Action Force (SAF) swooped down on the safe house of the terrorist at 4:20 p.m. Thursday in the depressed Payatas community in Quezon City.
“There are indications that this group has involvement in the (Batasan) blast,” said Torres, adding that the Sayyaf bandits opened fire at the policemen and the soldiers as they were approaching the house. The firefight lasted for at least five minutes.
Torres said: “This is actually an intelligence operation of the Army ISG, CIDG and SAF. This is a joint operation, raid on the ASG safe house in Payatas.”
He said two caliber .45 pistols of the Abu Sayyaf were recovered by the raiding team after the operation.
“They are suspects (in the blast). The initial report that we received is that there are indications that they have something to do with the blast. This (operation) is a product of our continuous intelligence operation on some (Abu Sayyaf) personality in Metro Manila,” said Torres.
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, for her part, called the raid "a significant breakthrough" in the investigation, and commended informants who tipped off authorities.
National Capital Region Police Office Director Geary Barias said officers found a license plate and a deed of sale for a motorcycle whose identification numbers matched those of the motorcycle used in the bombing.
"They are suspects in the bombing," Barias said.
Officers also found an ID card of one of the men in custody indicating he was a congressional staffer, but were trying to determine whether it was genuine, he said.
They also recovered a congressman's license plate with its district markings erased.
Incidentally, among the four fatalities in the blast was Akbar, who was a former leader of the Moro National Liberation Front and was among the co-founders of the Abu Sayyaf.
Investigators of the explosion is looking into the angle that Akbar was a possible target of the attack.
Barias said earlier that Akbar joined the Abu Sayyaf in the 1990s when it had just launched a campaign to set up an Islamic state in the southern Philippines.
As the group started attacking Christians, kidnapping and beheading hostages, Akbar quit and supported US-backed military operations against the militants in his Basilan province.
House Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. on Thursday has ordered the creation of a task force to spearhead a comprehensive review of the security setup in the House of Representatives following the blast that also wounded several others.
The House plenary confirmed on Wednesday de Venecia’s recommendation to name Representative Arthur Celeste (chairman of the national defense committee), Representative Rodolfo Antonino (chairman of the public order and safety committee), and opposition stalwart Representative Roilo Golez to the task force. (VR/Sunnex/With AP)
For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star Davao. (November 16, 2007 issue)
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