Tuesday, November 01, 2011

MILF rebels reject demands to surrender wanted leader in Basilan fighting

Ghazali Jaafar, the MILF deputy chairman for political affairs. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)

COTABATO CITY (Mindanao Examiner / Nov. 1, 2011) – The Philippines’ largest Muslim rebel group Moro Islamic Liberation Front on Tuesday rejected government demands to surrender a guerrilla leader accused of kidnappings and terrorism in the southern province of Basilan.

Manila has demanded the surrender of a senior MILF commander Dan Asnawi, who was also tagged as behind the killings of 19 soldiers during a firefight last month in Basilan’s Al-Barka town, a known rebel stronghold.

The soldiers, many of them undergoing scuba diving training in Zamboanga City, were sent to arrest Asnawi in Basilan as part of their test mission, but fighting erupted after they went inside a rebel territory in Al-Barka.

“We will not surrender Asnawi based on accusations by authorities. We have to follow a mechanism set by the peace panels, otherwise it will violate the cease-fire agreement,” said Ghazali Jaafar, the MILF’s deputy chairmen for political affairs.

Manila is currently negotiating peace with the MILF. The rebel group accused the military of violating the cease-fire when it ordered the arrest of Asnawi, the second highest MILF leader in Basilan. The fighting in Al-Barka also killed 5 rebels and wounded three others.

Authorities said Asnawi was involved in kidnappings for ransom and killings in Basilan, one of five provinces under the Muslim autonomous region. He was arrested in the past, but escaped from the provincial jail after rebel forces stormed the facility and rescued him.

The MILF has ordered rebel forces in Basilan province to defend itself from possible military offensive.

Last week, government troops also occupied an MILF base used as springboard for terror attacks and kidnappings in Zamboanga Sibugay province following days of intense fighting that killed and wounded dozens from both sides.

Officials said soldiers recovered a machine gun left behind by rebels under Wanning Abdusalam, who was also tagged by the military and police as behind the spate of kidnappings and killings in Zamboanga Peninsula.

But there was no sign of Abdusalam or his group, although military commanders insisted that the rebel leader had been wounded in the fighting with security forces.

Abdusalam was eventually disowned by his own group following the deadly air strikes on the guerilla base on a remote village called Labatan in Payao town.

The MILF protested the government attacks on its camp and accused the military of violating the truce. The rebel group maintains that government offensives in Payao town were directed at the MILF following air strikes by the military on the 113th Base Command of the Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces.

The fighting forced thousands of villagers to flee their homes to safety for fear they would be caught up in the crossfire or held hostage. (Mindanao Examiner)

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