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Sunday, November 23, 2008
2 Sayyaf bandits fall
MANILA - A police anti-terrorism unit has arrested two suspected members of an al-Qaida-linked group who were allegedly planning to set off bombs in the capital, the government said Saturday.
Anti-Terrorism Council spokesman and Justice Undersecretary Ricardo Blancaflor said police and soldiers from the National Counter-Terrorism Action Group arrested Sala Kasan Bairulla and his son, Albasher Bairulla, during a raid Friday on their safe house in suburban Taguig City.
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Blancaflor said in a statement that raiders recovered a homemade bomb, a pistol, ammunition and a grenade from the two alleged members of the Abu Sayyaf Islamic militant group. He did not provide details on the planned bombing targets.
He said the men will be charged with illegal possession of explosives and weapons.
"The bomb is considered as a high explosive and may cause severe damage to lives and properties when detonated," he said. The two Sayyaf bandits are now in the custody of the police's Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, pending filing of charges.
On November 1, the Philippine National Police (PNP) warned its units in the metropolis to be vigilant against plans by the terrorists associated with the Jemaah Islamiyah and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front to bomb malls, hotels, and other public places.
The PNP directive has said the explosives that may be used in the bombing are already in Taguig.
Reportedly, the bombings would be carried out this month.
On Tuesday government forces arrested another suspected Abu Sayyaf militant for his alleged involvement in a failed bomb plot at the airport on Jolo Island.
The Abu Sayyaf, which has been linked to kidnappings, bombing and beheadings, is on the US list of terrorist groups. The group has been crippled by US-backed military offensives but remains a threat, especially in the Philippines' volatile south, where it is based.
Philippine law prohibits foreign troops to engage in combat, but under a security agreement reached in 1998, US troops have provided counterterrorism training, weapons and equipment to Philippine forces fighting the Abu Sayyaf and other Islamic militants.(VR/AP/Sunnex)
(November 23, 2008 issue)
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