MILF rebels attack Philippine Army patrol base in Mindanao

COTABATO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Oct. 9. 2008) – Moro Islamic Liberation Front forces attacked Thursday a Philippine military patrol base, the second in barely two days in Mindanao, officials said.

Army Major Armand Rico, a spokesman for the Eastern Mindanao Command headquarters, said rebels harassed the base at around 8.25 a.m. in the village of Pagangan in Aleosan town in North Cotabato province.

“There were no reports of casualties in the latest attack,” he said, but a similar attack late Wednesday at an army detachment left one soldier wounded.

He said about 40 MILF rebels harassed the detachment shortly before 8.30 p.m. in the village of Pagatin in Maguindanao’s Datu Saudi Ampatuan town in the restive Muslim autonomous region.

“One soldier was wounded in the attack,” he said, adding, the rebels were led by Wahid Tundok, a notorious MILF commander wanted by authorities for the spate of bombings in the region.

The attack, the official said, triggered a heavy exchange of gunfire that lasted more than 30 minutes. There were no reports of enemy casualties, he said.

The military previously accused Tundok of providing sanctuary to Abu Sayyaf militants and Jemaah Islamiya bomb-makers Dulmatin and Pitono, both blamed for the 2002 Bali bombings.

It also linked Tundok to another MILF leader Abdul Basit Usman, who has links with the Jemaah Islamiya and wanted by the United States for terrorism.

President Gloria Arroyo has opened up peace talks with the MILF, the country’s largest Muslim secessionist rebel group in 2001, but suspended the negotiations last month after rogue commanders led a series of deadly attacks in Mindanao. (Mindanao Examiner)

RP Military Recovers Body Believed That Of Jemaah Bomber

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Feb. 19, 2008) – The Philippine military said it could have found the body of wanted Indonesian Jemaah Islamiya bomber, Dulmatin, tagged as behind the deadly 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 mostly tourists.

"We are awaiting DNA results to determine whether the body belongs to Dulmatin," Major Eugene Batara, a spokesman of the Western Mindanao Command in Zamboanga City, told the Mindanao Examiner.

Dulmatin's body, he said, was found on a shallow grave on Monday in a village in the town of Bato-Bato in Tawi-Tawi where troops previously clashed with the Abu Sayyaf, a local militant group that is believed to be protecting the Jemaah Islamiya bomber and other Indon militants hiding in the Sulu Archipelago.

In Zamboanga City, US and Philippine forensic experts took tissue samples from the body to determine whether the corpse was really Dulmatin. It would take at least a week before the results would be available, Batara said.

Troops clashed with the Abu Sayyaf on January 15 in Bato-Bato after a failed operation to rescue a kidnapped Muslim teacher, Omar Taup.Taup was seized by the Abu Sayyaf after raiding the Nortre Dame High School and killed a Catholic priest, Jesus Reynaldo Roda.

Batara said the body was buried in Zamboanga City on Tuesday. 'If indeed it was Dulmatin, it really shows that we are winning the war against terrorism, not only in the Philippines, but also in the Southeast Asian region where the JI is operating," he said.

The grave, he said, was discovered after the owner of the land reported to authorities that somebody had buried a cadaver. Batara said Dulmatin was wounded in a clash with government troops on January 31 in Lubbok village in Panglima Sugala town.

"From what we know, Dulmatin was wounded. He was shot in the body and probably wounded in the face and ankle," Batara said.Aside from Dulmatin, the Philippine authorities said as many as 30 Jemaah Islamiya militants are hiding in the Sulu Archipelago, including another Bali bomber, Umar Patek.

At least 88 Australians were killed in the attacks.US troops are currently assisting the Philippine military forces in tracking down known leaders of the Abu Sayyaf and the Jemaah Islamiya in the southern region.

On Tuesday, US officials handed over several infrastructure projects to Sulu Gov. Sakur Tan and pledged more support top help Manila in peace and development efforts in the province, where hundreds of American soldiers are deployed and conducting joint medical mission with Filipino forces. (Mindanao Examiner)

US Officials Visit Wounded Troops In South RP, Ban Media Coverage

US soldiers guard outside a Philippine military hospital in Zamboanga City where US Ambassador Kristie Kenney and senior US military officials visit Monday July 16, 2007 nine soldiers who are wounded in clashes with Abu Sayyaf militants and Moro Islamic Liberation Front in Basilan island, where a kidnapped Italian Catholic priest Giancarlo Bossi is believed being held by rogue MILF members. US officials have banned Filipino journalists and news photographers from covering Kenney's visit for a still unknown reason. (Mindanao Examiner Photo Service)

A Landing Craft Air Cushion (LCAC) 14, assigned to the "Swift Intruders" of Assault Craft Unit (ACU) 5, comes ashore Wednesday July 11, 2007 to pick up Seabees with Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 7 and Amphibious Construction Battalion (ACB) 1 at the completion of their mission in the Philippines. Members of NMCB-7 and ACB-1, with medical support from the Third Medical Battalion, worked together with Filipino Seabees from the First Construction Battalion in support of Pacific Partnership 2007. The mission, a four-month humanitarian assistance mission to Southeast Asia and Oceania includes specialized medical care and various construction and engineering projects.(US Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Paul D. Williams)

ZAMBOANGA CITY (Mindanao Examiner / 16 Jul) – US Ambassador Kristie Kenney and senior American military officials on Monday visited nine Filipino soldiers wounded in clashes with Abu Sayyaf and Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels in Zamboanga City.

Kenney arrived onboard a bullet-proof van at a military hospital inside Western Mindanao Command headquarters where the soldiers are recuperating from bullet wounds in clashes that occurred July 10 in Basilan’s Al-Barka town.

Fourteen soldiers were also killed in the fighting, ten of them beheaded and mutilated.
Kenney did not give any statement and journalists and photographers were banned in the hospital on orders from US officials for a still unknown reason.

The US is helping the Philippines defeat terrorism and have deployed hundreds of American troops in the volatile region, where local military is battling Abu Sayyaf militants tied to al-Qaeda terror network and members of the Jemaah Islamiya.

Army Lt. Gen. Eugenio Cedo, Western Mindanao Command chief, was quoted Monday by The Australian as saying that his group is close to capturing Jemaah Islamiya explosives expert Dulmatin after an informant contacted the military offering to surrender the 2002 Bali bombing mastermind.

Aside from Dulmatin, troops are also tracking down another Bali bomber Umar Patek, who is being coddled by the Abu Sayyaf group.

Cedo said he received a message last week from a member of the former rebel group, Moro National Liberation Front, who promised he could lead government soldiers to Dulmatin’s hideout in Jolo island, about 950 km south of Manila. "I think we have a good prospect of finding him," Cedo said. "I received this message saying Dulmatin would be surrendered to us."

He said the informant had even pinpointed the precise location of Dulmatin’s lair in Jolo island.
The US has offered a $10 million bounty for Dulmatin’s capture and $1 million for Patek’s head. The Bali bombings killed 202 people, mostly foreigners, including 88 Australian holiday-makers.
The Philippine military, backed by US intelligence, mounted new offensive against the Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiya terrorists began on Jolo island.

In many instances, villagers reported seeing heavily armed US soldiers in armored vehicles, with Filipino troops.

The offensive, codenamed Oplan: Ultimatum 2, is aimed at capturing - dead or alive - leaders of the Abu Sayyaf and the two Jemaah Islamiya bombers. Indonesian authorities also tagged the Jemaah Islamiya as behind the 2003 JW Marriott hotel car bombing that killed a dozen people and wounded over 150 others.

Hundreds of US troops are also deployed in Jolo to help the local military fight the Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiya.

The US military provides technical intelligence to local troops because they are not allowed to participate in combat operation against the Abu Sayyaf or Jemaah Islamiya, both included in the US terror list.

Last month, the US Pacific commander, Adm. Timothy Keating, in a surprised visit in Jolo island, inspected a captured Abu Sayyaf mountain base in Tugas village in Patikul town. (Mindanao Examiner)

Dulmatin, Posibleng Nasa Sulu Pa Rin!

SULU (Mindanao Examiner / 10 Jun) – Posibleng nasa Sulu pa rin ang Jemaah Islamiya bomber na si Dulmatin, bagamat sa lalawigan ng Tawi-Tawi nabawi ang apat na anak nito.

Inaalam pa rin ng militar ang balitang nagbabalak na tumakas si Dulmatin sa Sabah o Indonesia ngunit hindi pa rin mabatid ng mga awtoridad kung ilan ang bilang ng mga Jemaah Islamiya sa Sulu o Tawi-Tawi.

Naunang sinabi ni Western Mindanao Command chief Lt. Gen. Eugenio Cedo na may ulat ang militar na posibleng nasa Tawi-Tawi na si Dulmatin dahil doon nabawi ang mga anak nito nuong Mayo.

Ngunit ayon sa ibang mga opisyal ay maaraing nasa kabundukan pa ng Sulu si Dulmatin dahil ang Tawi-Tawi ay hindi tradisyonal na lungga ng Abu Sayyaf. Hindi rin gaano kalaki ang mga supporters ng Abu Sayyaf sa Tawi-Tawi.

Ngunit inamin ng mga ilang intelligence officials na madaling makatakas sa Sulu patungong Sabah dahil sa lawak ng karagatan na hindi naman nababantayan ng husto ng Philippine Navy at Philippine Air Force.

Hirap rin umanong tugisin si Dulmatin at ibang mga Indoenesian at Malaysian Jemaah Islamiya bombers dahil sa mukhang mga Pinoy ito. (Mindanao Examiner)

Dulmatin Child Tries To Flee From RP Military Hospital

A Filipino soldier restrains one of four children of Indonesian Jemaah Islamiya bomber, Dulmatin, on Friday 11 May 2007, she she tries to flee from a military hospital in Zamboanga City in the southern Philippines. Troops raided a hideout of Jemaah Islamiya on Tawi-Tawi island near Sabah, Malaysia and found the children, ages 2, 5, 7 and 9. Two Filipino women who acted as guardians of the children are currently being investigated by the military. Troops are tracking down Dulmatin. (Mindanao Examiner Photo Service)

ZAMBOANGA CITY (Mindanao Examiner / 11 May) – One of four children of Jemaah Islamiya bomber Dulmatin tried to flee Friday from a military hospital in Zamboanga City after breaking down while undergoing a medical check-up.

The children - one boy and three girls ages 2, 5, 7 and 9 - were take into military custody after soldiers and policemen raided Friday a hideout of Jemaah Islamiya in the southern island of Tawi-Tawi near the Sabah, Malaysia border.

Two Filipino women who acted as guardians of the children are currently being investigated by the military.

The children arrived in Zamboanga City onboard a small Philippine military plane from Tawi-Tawi and taken to a hospital inside the tightly guarded Edwin Andrews Air Base.

The children broke down in tears, after they saw armed soldiers around them and one of them, the eldest, tried to flee after she failed to find her adult companion.

One Filipino intelligence operative restrained her.

A local army spokesman, Lt. Mike Rayman, said the children would be handed over to the Bureau of Immigration in Manila. “We will hand over the children to the Bureau of Immigration in Manila after their medical check up in Zamboanga,” he said.

Rayman said the children were also fed with hamburgers and fresh milk.

The children were previously thought to be hiding with the Abu Sayyaf in Jolo island, where Dulmatin’s wife, Istiada Bt. H. Oemar Sovie, alias Amenah Toha, and her two children had been arrested in October last year.

Dulmatin, also known as Amar Bin Usman, is one of several Indonesian terrorists, including Umar Patek, hiding in Jolo island with the Abu Sayyaf. Dulmatin and Patek are wanted for the October 2002 bombings in the resort Indonesian island of Bali in which 202 mostly foreign tourists were killed.

The Jemaah Islamiya is also believed as behind the 2004 bombing of a Filipino ferry off Manila Bay that killed 116 people-the second-worst terrorist attack in Southeast Asia after the 2002 Bali bombs.

The group was largely blamed by Philippine authorities in a series of bombings in Manila in December 2000 that killed 22 and wounded more than 100 people. One of the bombs exploded at an open square less than a hundred meters from the U.S. Embassy.

The U.S. has offered a $10 million bounty for the capture of Dulmatin, an electronics specialist with training in al-Qa'eda camps in Afghanistan. He is a senior figure in the Jemaah Islamiya terrorist organization. (With reports from Chris Navarra and Juan Magtanggol)

Breaking News: Four Children Of Jemaah Islamiya Bomber Now In Philippine Custody

ZAMBOANGA CITY (Mindanao Examiner / 11 May) – The Philippine military on Friday said it has in custody four children of Jemaah Islamiya bomber Dulmatin, tagged as behind the deadly Bali bombing in 2002.

Filipino soldiers tracked down the children in the southern island of Tawi-Tawi near the Sabah border. “We have in custody the four children of Dulmatin,” a regional army spokesman Maj. Eugene Batara told the independent regional newspaper, the Mindanao Examiner.

He did not say whether more people had been arrested or if the children or their guardians were planning to escape to Sabah.

The children were previously thought to be hiding with the Abu Sayyaf in Jolo island, where Dulmatin’s wife, Istiada Bt. H. Oemar Sovie, alias Amenah Toha, and her two children had been arrested in October last year.

It was unknown how the soldiers tracked down the children.

Dulmatin, also known as Amar Bin Usman, is one of several Indonesian terrorists, including Umar Patek, hiding in Jolo island with the Abu Sayyaf. Dulmatin and Patek are wanted for the October 2002 bombings in the resort Indonesian island of Bali in which 202 mostly foreign tourists were killed.

The Jemaah Islamiya is also believed as behind the 2004 bombing of a Filipino ferry off Manila Bay that killed 116 people-the second-worst terrorist attack in Southeast Asia after the 2002 Bali bombs.

The group was largely blamed by Philippine authorities in a series of bombings in Manila in December 2000 that killed 22 and wounded more than 100 people. One of the bombs exploded at an open square less than a hundred meters from the U.S. Embassy.

The U.S. has offered a $10 million bounty for the capture of Dulmatin, an electronics specialist with training in al-Qa'eda camps in Afghanistan. He is a senior figure in the Jemaah Islamiya terrorist organization.

Dulmatin fled to Mindanao in the southern Philippines soon after the August 2003 bombing of the JW Marriott hotel in Jakarta. There, he is one of four top JI leaders—including Umar Patek, Zulkifli bin Hir and Abdul Rahman Ayub — who trained members of JI and the Abu Sayyaf group in Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) camps in the Philippines, according to an Asian terror expert, Zachary Abusa.

In 2005, Dulmatin and Umar Patek ordered Abdullah Sonata, a JI operative in Central Java who was arrested in connection with the September 4, 2004 Australian Embassy bombing, to dispatch additional JI members to Mindanao for training.

He has also called for JI suicide bombers to be sent to the Philippines for operations.

In January, Filipino soldiers killed an Indonesian Jemaah Islamiya militant, Gufran, and five other Filipino Abu Sayyaf members in a clash at sea off Tawi-Tawi while trying to escape to Sabah. (Mindanao Examiner)

US Seeks Help Of Philippine Muslim Rebels To Help Capture Jemaah, Al-Qaeda Terrorists

U.S. soldiers are to begin a joint military drill with Philippines troops in Jolo and Mindanao islands in Southern Philippines. The country's largest Muslim rebel group, Moro Islamic Liberation Front, on Friday 16 Feb 2007 says Washington is seeking its help to help capture Jemaah Islamiya bombers Dumatin and Umar Patek and Filipino terrorists with links to al-Qaeda. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)

MAGUINDANAO (Mindanao Examiner / 16 Feb) – A group of senior U.S. officials held a secret meeting with the Philippines’ largest Muslim rebel group and sought help to capture Indonesian and Filipino militants with links to al-Qaeda and Jemaah Islamiya terror network, a rebel spokesman said Friday.

The meeting took place inside a rebel base of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in Shariff Kabunsuan on Mindanao island, a hot bed of insurgency in the southern Philippines.

A rebel spokesman, Eid Kabalu, said the meeting on Thursday was centered on the hunt for Jemaah Islamiya militants Dulmatin and Umar Patek, tagged as behind the 2002 Bali bombings that killed more than 200 people, including 88 Australian holiday-makers.

And for the capture of Filipino militant Abdulbasit Usman, blamed for the spate of bombings in Mindanao and linked by Philippine authorities to the Jemaah Islamiya and al-Qaeda. Usman has a 50,000 dollar bounty on his head for his arrest.

Kabalu said U.S. Chargé d' affaires Paul Jones and U.S. Army Col. David Maxwell, commander of the Joint Special Operations Task Force-Philippines, led the group in meeting MILF deputy chief, Ghazali Jaafar. The meeting was long, he said.

“They came to us and sought our help to capture the terrorists. The MILF signed an accord with the Philippine government and rebel forces are helping authorities hunt down these criminals through the ad-hoc joint action group.”

“As a matter of fact, the MILF, through the ad-hoc joint action group, provided vital intelligence about terrorists. The MILF is fighting these criminals because we are also affected by their activities,” Kabalu told the Mindanao Examiner.

He did not identify other U.S. officials who accompanied Jones.

But other rebel sources said aside from Jones and Maxwell, Jon Lindborg, mission director of the U.S. Agency for International Development and Col. Bruce West, U.S. Embassy Defense Attaché' and Paul Kennedy, a regional security officer, were also in the meeting.

Philippine security officials said Abu Sayyaf militants tied to al-Qaeda were coddling Dulmatin and Patek in Jolo island in the Sulu Archipelago, about 950 km south of Manila.

And Usman is hiding in Maguindanao province, a stronghold of the MILF on Mindanao island.
The Adnkronos International on Friday also reported about how the U.S. officials secretly met with the MILF and asked for help in the hunt for Dulmatin and Patek.

It quoted Jaafar as saying: "They want us to help by providing vital information that will lead to the arrest of the two terrorists. I said we could help them because we are also against the two. We are always affected by their activities."

"They asked also about the whereabouts of Abdul Basit Usman. We told them that he never became a member of our organization ever since," Jaafar added.

Washington offered as much as $10 million bounty for the capture of Dulmatin and $1 million for Patek's head. The MILF renounced any link with terrorist organizations in 2003 when its late leader, Salamat Hashim, asked Washington to get involved in the peace talks with Manila.

Regarding the peace talks, Jaafar said Washington reiterated its concern for the current problems encountered.

Manila began peace negotiations with the MILF in 2001, but no major accord has been signed by both sides, except for a cease-fire agreement. And many rebels are slowly losing their patience on the five-year old peace talks.

Peace talks ended in September last year in Malaysia with both sides failing to sign any agreement on the most contentious issue -- ancestral domain -- which refers to the MILF demand for territory that will constitute a Muslim homeland.

It is the single most important issue in the peace negotiations before the rebel group can reach a political settlement.

Malaysia, an influential member of the Organization of Islamic Conference, is brokering the peace talks.

"They are concerned with peace process. They want to help and strengthen their peace initiatives in Mindanao," Jaafar said.

A day before Jone's visit to the MILF camp, a six-man delegation from European Union led by Alistar MacDonald, Ambassador of the European Community to the Philippines, also met rebel leaders in the same venue.

"They reiterated their commitment to help and resolve the problem in Mindanao through the negotiations. We welcomed their concern because you know we really want an end to the problem," Jaafar said.

MILF chieftain Murad Ebrahim previously warned that Manila should be blamed if the peace talks fail. He said the talks are now passing “a turbulent area” and that the Filipino government must take responsibility for the breakdown of the negotiations.

“This signals that we are now on the danger zone of the peace talks,” Ebrahim said.

The MILF has rejected Manila's offer for a limited autonomy in the mineral-rich, but restive Mindanao island, home to about 4 million Muslims who want a separate Islamic state. (Mindanao Examiner)

Dulmatin Still Holed Out In Jolo Jungle

A U.S. military convoy passes in a village in Maimbun town in Jolo island in the southern Philippines on Thursday 25 Jan 2007. Filipino security forces, assisted by U.S. troops, are pursuing two Jemaah Islamiya bombers, Dulmatin and Umar Patek, and Abu Sayyaf militants who are protecting the two men, tagged as behind the 2002 Bali bombinngs that killed 202 people, including 88 Australians. (Mindanao Examiner Photo exclusive for The Australian)

JOLO ISLAND (Emma Kate Symons / 27 Jan) - ''THE Americans like to talk about the battle for hearts and minds. But you need to hold them by the balls. There has to be the threat of force.''

As the afternoon call to prayer echoes across the teeming port town of Jolo, the chain-smoking Filipino intelligence boss spits out his lewd warning to fugitive Bali bombers Dulmatin and Omar Patek.

The two Jemaah Islamiah leaders are holed up somewhere in the cloud-covered jungle only a few dozen kilometres from where we sit beneath the mango trees at Philippines army headquarters, shared with the assisting US special forces.

''We know where they are,'' the spy boss says of Dulmatin and Patek. ''But it's a matter of getting there in time. They could be inside Mount Dajo but to get there even with choppers, they would know we were coming and move on.''

From heavily fortified Camp Teodolfo Bautista, the American-backed local forces are waging an extraordinary, ''surgical'' military manhunt for some of the world's most wanted terrorists, believed to be hiding out on this 300sqkm volcanic island at the Philippines' southern tip.

It is an operation involving up to 8000 local troops and hundreds of US special forces and intelligence experts. Operation Ultimatum has ''liquidated'' a handful of ''high-value targets'' including Khadaffy Janjalani, the leader of local al-Qa'ida-linked Islamist terrorist outfit Abu Sayyaf, believed to now be under JI control.

But Dulmatin -- with his $US10 million ($12.9 million) US government bounty (double the reward offered for Janjalani), reputation for being the ''genius'' bomb technician behind the 2002 Bali attacks and responsible for a subsequent string of deadly attacks in the southern Philippines and possibly around Asia -- is enemy No1.

The wealthy Javanese was a protege of master JI bomb-maker Azahari bin Husin, who was killed in a shootout with police in Indonesia in late 2005. Azahari's death left three Bali bomb masterminds on the run -- Dulmatin, Patek and fellow Indonesian Noordin Mohammed Top, who has narrowly evaded capture on several occasions.

Dulmatin -- also known as Mutkamar, Amar Usman, Djoko Supriyanto and Joko Pitono -- came to the southern Philippines some time in 2003. The region has been home to a violent Muslim insurgency, led by the separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front, which is now involved in official peace talks, for more than three decades.

Dulmatin's mission was to develop the southern Philippines chapter of JI and share bomb-making techniques with his Abu Sayyaf brothers, after he directed the 2002 Bali attacks that killed 202 people, including 88 Australians. Abu Sayyaf is a shadowy local kidnap-for-ransom group held responsible for killing hundreds through bombings, beheadings and abductions, targeting Christians and foreigners.

Now, after several years establishing bomb-training camps in central Mindanao funnelling technical expertise and al-Qa'ida-sourced money to their ideological brothers, Dulmatin and Patek are virtual prisoners on one of the world's most dangerous and isolated islands.

They are confined to Jolo, an autonomous 94 per cent Muslim region of Mindanao, where dense jungle and cloud cover can limit visibility to 1m.This week, as reported by The Australian, the military confirmed Dulmatin was wounded in a fierce gun battle that killed Abu Sayyaf spokesman Abu Solaiman.

Dulmatin escaped on foot, probably with Patek. Yet according to the top Philippines and US army commanders, the JI pair have been cornered.

In a series of exclusive interviews with The Weekend Australian, top Philippines and US commanders and intelligence officials offered unprecedented insight into their tactics, shared intelligence capabilities and conviction that on the frontline of the Southeast Asian war on terrorism, they are winning.

A group of deep penetration agents inside the Abu Sayyaf and JI cells on Jolo are funnelling prized intelligence about the location and activities of the Bali bombers and their 100 or so Abu Sayyaf cronies. The fugitives have been forced to change locations every six hours -- sometimes disguised by wigs and burqas -- in small groups to evade detection.

The army even knows that Dulmatin has hidden two of his sons away on nearby Basilan island, probably with the widow of Abu Sayyaf founder Abburajak Janjalani. ''This is a Philippines battle and the Philippines forces are winning,'' says US Colonel David Maxwell, the US commander of joint special forces operations in the southern Philippines.''

The Philippine navy has done a tremendous job with the ability for Dulmatin and Patek to move by water. They have really isolated Jolo so well and it is probably difficult for them to move off the island.''But where are they going to go? You look at what the armed forces of The Philippines is doing in central Mindanao. Are they going to go back after they were evicted by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front? Basilan (island) is very secure these days, they can't go back there.''

They will have to leave The Philippines and right now their best hope is to continue to remain here on Jolo because they've got a low level of basic support network that has allowed them to survive. But it's only a matter of time.

The armed forces of The Philippines are going to win over all the sanctuaries and they are going to win over all the people and eliminate the ability for them to survive on the island.''The fight on Jolo is being keenly watched by the Australian armed forces and their bosses in Canberra, who are negotiating a status of forces agreement with The Philippines.

On Monday, Australian ambassador to The Philippines Tony Hely and defence staff will be in Zamboanga City, the closest mainland Mindanao city to Jolo, to meet with local officials.For now, Australia is limited to providing intelligence support and training in bomb detection, hostage rescue and maritime security. But once the defence pact is signed later this year, Australian forces could conduct large joint training exercises and potentially send forces to assist in Jolo.

General Eugenio Cedo, commander of Philippines forces in Western Mindanao, said he would warmly welcome Australian military support in the south. But he and a handful of top military brass are surprised that Australia has not joined the US and Philippines in offering generous rewards for the capture of Dulmatin and Patek.

This week they urged Canberra to join in.The Philippines military admits there have been some missteps in its hunt for Dulmatin. In October, it arrested Dulmatin's wife on Jolo, with two of the bomber's children. She offered valuable intelligence, including listing at least seven JI operatives in the south, before being deported to Indonesia.

''We shouldn't have arrested the wife,'' says army Captain Abdurassad Sirajan. ''He was probably with her the same day. You put the wives under surveillance and monitor them, then you come much closer to capturing the high-value targets.''Maxwell agrees that Dulmatin and Patek ''must be captured or neutralised'', despite the difficulties presented by the complex jungle terrain.

''The Philippines forces are trying to win the hearts and minds of the local population. But sometimes it's like chasing ghosts,'' he says.''Also, the culture on Jolo is very complex. The Abu Sayyaf group has strong family ties, and strong tribal ties (to the local warrior Tausug tribe). Where there are blood relations and religious connections, those ties remain.''

As a palpable sign of the intense US interest in winning this battle against terrorism, the Hawaii-based commander of American special forces in the Pacific, Major General David Fridovich, US President George W. Bush's special state department adviser on ''reaching out to the Muslim world'' Karen Hughes and US ambassador to The Philippines Kristie Kenney, all came to Jolo island this week.

The Americans are waging a costly fight against poverty, exclusion and discrimination on the island, with a host of multi-million-dollar aid projects, ranging from internet-equipped schools and roads to medical centres, ambulances and hospitals.

It is their calculated battle for hearts and minds on Jolo, a desperately poor community of 600,000 where fresh water, electricity and basic healthcare are rarities.Yet for all the aid and work to shield civilians from becoming ''collateral damage'', Islamist ideology and hatred of Christians, foreigners and particularly Americans, the Philippines former colonial masters, are still powerful forces on Jolo.

Gesturing towards Jolo's grand mosque, a persistent stronghold of radical Muslim muftis preaching violent jihadism, Sirajan, a Muslim and Jolo-raised former Moro Islamic Liberation Front commander, says ruefully: ''Even if we have killed Janjalani and all the terrorist leaders like Dulmatin and Patek, there will still be terrorism here.''It is an ideology, it is ingrained religious extremism, it is a part of life here.'' (The Australian)

Dulmatin Wounded In Clash In Southern RP

A Philippine Air Force C130 plane transporting troops flies past a U.S. Army convoy on Thursday 25 Jan 2007 in the southern island of Jolo, where security forces are pursuing two Jemaah Islamiya bombers, Dulmatin and Umar Patek, and Abu Sayyaf militants who are protecting the two men, tagged as behind the 2002 Bali bombinngs that killed 202 people, including 88 Australians. Muslim children in Jolo island in the southern Philippines look at photos Thursday 25 Jan 2007 of wanted Jemaah Islamiya bombers Dulmatin and Umar Patek and Abu Sayyaf militants coddling the duo tagged as behind the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 2002 people, including 88 Australians.exclusio(Mindanao Examiner Photos exclusive for The Australian)

JOLO ISLAND (Mindanao Examiner / 25 Jan) – One of two Jemaah Islamiya bombers hiding in the southern island of Jolo has been shot and wounded in a clash in Mount Dajo in Patikul town, Philippine military officials told the Mindanao Examiner.

Captain Abdurassad Sirajan, of the Army’s 104th Infantry Brigade, said Indonesian electronics expert Dulmatin was injured after Special Forces soldiers shot him January 16 during a raid on an Abu Sayyaf hideout.

In the raid, Sirajan said, a senior Abu Sayyaf leader, Jainal Antel Sali, Jr., was killed by soldiers. His body had been recovered and identified by relatives, he said.

“Dulmatin is wounded in that clash and we will get him sooner or later, all of them, they will suffer the same fate,” he told the Mindanao Examiner.

Southern Philippines military chief Lt. Gen. Eugenio Cedo said troops were pursuing not only Dulmatin, but another Jemaah Islamiya bomber, Umar Patek and Abu Sayyaf leaders Radulan Sahiron and Isnilon Hapilon, the most senior of about a dozen remaining commanders of the group blamed for the spate of bombings and kidnappings of foreigners in the troubled southern Philippine region.

“Escaping from the operation is difficult at this time because we have thousands of troops pursuing the terrorists and they are on the run for their lives. It is just a matter of time before we get Dulmatin and Patek and the others,” Cedo said in a separate interview.

About 6,000 Filipino soldiers, backed by U.S. military intelligence, are combing the thick jungle of Jolo island, about 950 km south of Manila. But rugged terrain and thick jungle canopy are threatening the soldiers. “The terrain is grueling and treacherous and is slowing down the offensive, but we will not stop. The terrorists must be eliminated,” Cedo said.

Some 150 U.S. Special Forces and Marines are deployed in Jolo island since last year and have been helping the local military track down the Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiya militants.

On Thursday, Karen Hughes, Under Secretary for Diplomacy and Public Affairs in the U.S. State Department, inspected American soldiers and was briefed about the security situation on the island and the progress of the hunt for terrorists.

Hughes, accompanied by U.S. Ambassador Kristie Kenney and Maj. Gen. David Fridovich, commander of the U.S. Special Operations Command Pacific, and Col. David Maxwell, commander of the U.S. forces in the southern Philippines, also inspected U.S.-funded infrastructure projects in Maimbung town under tight security.

The U.S. offered $10 million bounty for Dulmatin’s capture and another $2 million for Patek. Both the Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiya are on the U.S. list of foreign terrorist organizations. (Mindanao Examiner)

Sayyaf Tagged As Behind Jolo Bombing

Scenes on Jolo island on Monday 17 Oct 2006, a day after suspected Abu Sayyaf militants detonated a powerful homemade bomb inside the provincial police headquarters and wounding three people. (Mindanao Examiner/Juan Magtanggol)

JOLO ISLAND (Juan Magtanggol / 17 Oct) – The Philippine military on Monday tagged the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf group as behind the weekend bombing in Jolo island that wounded three people.

“The urban terrorist group of the Abu Sayyaf operating in Jolo could be behind the latest bombing,” said Lt. Col. Bartolome Bacarro, a military spokesman.

He said a motorcycle taxi laden with explosives was detonated near a small hotel called Peace Keeper’s Inn and a military hospital at around 7.10 p.m.

"An explosion occurred at Peace Keeper's Inn and three people are wounded in the blast. Initial investigation disclosed that an IED (improvised explosive device) was placed inside a plastic bag and left at an unattended tricycle parked in the area," Bacarro said.

The hotel is located inside the provincial police headquarters in the village of Asturias in downtown Jolo. The deputy governor of Jolo island, Lady Ann Sahidula, said there were no reports of casualties. "There was a blast near the hotel's beauty parlor.

Authorities are still investigating the motive of the blast," she said in a separate interview.The Abu Sayyaf was also tagged as behind the bombing in March of a Church-run cooperative store that left nine people dead and 20 injured in downtown Jolo.

Philippine Army Maj. Gen. Eugenio Cedo, commander of the Western Mindanao Command, on Monday inspected the bomb site and spoke to his commanders, ordering them to intensify the hunt for the Abu Sayyaf and the two JI bombers.

He also spoke to soldiers in the towns of Indanan and Patikul, urging them to get Dulmatin and Patek and Janjalani dead or alive.“Don’t give them any chance. Hit them hard and finish them off,” he said.

Troops on Sunday also disarmed two homemade bombs, assembled from mortar rockets, left at a market in Pagadian City in Zamboanga del Sur province, days after a spate of bombings blamed on the Abu Sayyaf and the Jemaah Islamiya terror network killed at least 14 people in the restive region.

The bomb, concealed in a backpack, was discovered by patrolling soldiers and militias at around 3 a.m. at the gate of the Agora market in downtown Pagadian, according to Bacarro.

Pagadian, a bustling city and center of trade and commerce in Western Mindanao, was bombed in the past and authorities had linked the Abu Sayyaf and radical members of the larger Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) to the attacks.

But intelligence officials said they see the signature of the Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiya in the foiled bombing. "There is a signature and it points to the Abu Sayyaf and the JI. We can't say at this time whether the MILF was a part of this attempt to blow up the market," one army intelligence officer.

The bombings last week in the southern region were believed in retaliation to the arrest of the Indonesian wife and two children of Jemaah Islamiya bomber, Dulmatin, in Jolo island.

Istiada Oemar Sovie and her two boys ages 6 and 8 were arrested after Filipino soldiers pursuing Dulmatin raided a terrorist hideout in Patikul town.Dulmatin and his companion Umar Patek, who is also hiding in Jolo island are both wanted by Indonesia for the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 people and the 2003 JW Mariot hotel bombing in Jakarta.

A homemade bomb exploded Oct. 11 in Cotabato City, the 3rd in less than 24 hours in the restive Central Mindanao region, where two bombs killed at least 14 people at a market in Tacurong City in Sultan Kudarat province and in the busy business center of Makilala town in North Cotabato province.

The governor of North Cotabato, Emmanuel Pinol, linked an MILF leader -- Basit Usman -- to the attack in Makilala town, but the rebel group strongly denied the accusation. "We have nothing to do with the bombings.

The MILF is currently negotiating peace with the Philippine government and we are sincere with the talks. There is a cease-fire agreement and the MILF is not part in any of these terrorist activities," a rebel spokesman, Eid Kabalu, said.

The military said the Abu Sayyaf headed by Khadaffy Janjalani is protecting Dulmatin and Patek in Jolo island. As many as 31 Jemaah Islamiya militants are believed hiding in the southern Philippines, particularly in Mindanao where the MILF is actively operating, it said.No group or individual claimed responsibility for all the bombings. (Mindanao Examiner)

RP Military Confirms Arrest Of Dulmatin's Wife

Scanned photographs of captured Indonesian woman, Istiada BT. H. Oemar Sovie alias Amenah Toha and her two children. Istiada, arrested by Filipino troops in the southern island of Jolo, is the wife of Jemaah Islamiya militant Dulmatin, who is one of Asia's most wanted terror leader whose group is tied to al-Qaeda network. Indonesian authorities has tagged Dulmatin as one of the masterminds behind the 2002 Bali nightclubs and the 2003 JW Marriot Hotel bombings in Jakarta. (Mindanao Examnier)

ZAMBOANGA CITY (Mindanao Examiner / 06 Oct) – The Philippine military on Friday has confirmed the arrest of an Indonesian wife of wanted Jemaah Islamiya bomber, Dulmatin, in a raid at a terrorist hideout in the southern island of Jolo.

"We are confirming the arrest of the woman, Istiada Bt. H. Oemar Sovie, alias Amenah Toha, who is Dulmatin's wife. She admitted to be the wife of the terrorist leader Dulmatin and she is being interrogated in Zamboanga City.

Troops are still tracking down Dulmatin on the island (of Jolo)," Lt. Col. Bartolome Bacarro, spokesman of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, told the Mindanao Examiner by phone from Manila.

He said the woman was arrested in Jolo’s Patikul town in a pre-dawn raid on Tuesday. The raid also led the arrest of an Abu Sayyaf militant Nadzmir Abduraji Amad in the neighboring town of Talipao.

He said Filipino soldiers captured the woman who was with her two children in a raid that originally targeted Dulmatin. "Our operation against Dulmatin and the other terrorists will continue until they are captured," Bacarro said.

Security forces are also pursuing Dulmatin's companion, Umar Patek, a Malaysian JI member, and leaders of the local terror group, the Abu Sayyaf, headed by Khadaffy Janjalani.

Bacarro said the woman is being investigated whether she had a role in Dulmatin's terror activities. Both Dulmatin and Patek were tagged by Jakarta as behind the 2002 Bali bombings. Dulmatin is one of Asia’s most wanted Jemaah Islamiya leaders.

He said the woman admitted to military interrogators that she is the wife of the 37-year old Dulmatin, also known as Amar Bin Usman.

Dulmatin’s wife also said that she sneaked by boat to the southern Philippine island of Tawi-Tawi from Malaysia in August 2003 and was fetched by Azhar, a Jemaah Islamiya militant, and brought to Jolo island to join the group of the wanted terror leader and the Abu Sayyaf.

The Jemaah Islamiya is also believed as behind the 2004 bombing of a Filipino ferry off Manila Bay that killed 116 people-the second-worst terrorist attack in Southeast Asia after the 2002 Bali bombs.

The group was largely blamed by Philippine authorities in a series of bombings in Manila in December 2000 that killed 22 and wounded more than 100 people. One of the bombs exploded at an open square less than a hundred meters from the U.S. Embassy.

The U.S. has offered a $10 million bounty for the capture of Dulmatin, an electronics specialist with training in al-Qa'eda camps in Afghanistan. He is a senior figure in the Jemaah Islamiya terrorist organization and is believed to have been one of the masterminds behind the bombings of two night clubs in Bali, which killed 202 people, mostly Australians, including seven U.S. citizens.

Dulmatin fled to Mindanao in the southern Philippines soon after the August 2003 bombing of the JW Marriott hotel in Jakarta. There, he is one of four top JI leaders—including Umar Patek, Zulkifli bin Hir and Abdul Rahman Ayub—who trained members of JI and the Abu Sayyaf group in Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) camps in the Philippines, said Zachary Abusa, an Asian terror expert.

In 2005, Dulmatin and Umar Patek ordered Abdullah Sonata, a JI operative in Central Java who was arrested in conjunction with the September 4, 2004 Australian Embassy bombing, to dispatch additional JI members to Mindanao for training. He has also called for JI suicide bombers to be sent to the Philippines for operations.

Abusa said Dulmatin, along with Zulkarnaen and Abu Rusdan, was designated for involvement in terrorism by the U.S. Department of the Treasury in April, and placed on the UN's 1267 Committee for terrorist financing in early 2005. (Mindanao Examiner)

Wife Of One Of Asia's Most Wanted Terror Man Captured In Jolo Island

ZAMBOANGA CITY (Mindanao Examiner / 05 Oct) – Filipino soldiers in the southern Philippine island of Jolo have captured the Indonesian wife and two children of one of Asia’s most wanted Jemaah Islamiya leader, Dulmatin, blamed for the deadly 2002 Bali and Jakarta bombings.

Troops, backed by U.S. military intelligence, are still pursuing Dulmatin and his companion Umar Patek, both tagged by Jakarta as behind the bombings. The Philippine military said Dulmatin and Patek are being protected by the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf group headed by Khadaffy Janjalani.

The woman, Istiada Bt. H. Oemar Sovie, alias Amenah Toha, is currently being interrogated in Zamboanga City, one senior Filipino security official, who asked not to be named, told the Mindanao Examiner on Thursday.

He said the woman and two of Dulmatin’s children were arrested in Jolo’s Patikul town in a pre-dawn raid on Tuesday. The raid also led the arrest of an Abu Sayyaf militant Nadzmir Abduraji Amad in the neighboring town of Talipao.

"What I know was that we have arrested Dulmatin's wife and two of their children in a raid in Patikul. She is being interrogated in Zamboanga," he said.

He said the woman admitted to military interrogators that she is the wife of the 37-year old Dulmatin, also known as Amar Bin Usman.

Dulmatin’s wife also said that she sneaked by boat to the southern Philippine island of Tawi-Tawi from Malaysia in August 2003 and was fetched by Azhar, a Jemaah Islamiya militant, and brought to Jolo island to join the group of the wanted terror leader and the Abu Sayyaf.

The Jemaah Islamiya is also believed as behind the 2004 bombing of a Filipino ferry off Manila Bay that killed 116 people-the second-worst terrorist attack in Southeast Asia after the 2002 Bali bombs. And the December 2000 Rizal Day bombings in Manila.T

The Rizal Day bombings were a series of bombings that occurred in various places in Metro Manila on December 30 within a span of a few hours, killing 22 and wounding more than 100 people. December 30 is Rizal Day in the Philippines and a national holiday, commemorating the execution of the country’s national hero, Jose Rizal.

One of the bombs exploded at an open square less than a hundred meters from the U.S. Embassy.

The U.S. has offered a $10 million bounty for the capture of Dulmatin, an electronics specialist with training in al-Qa'eda camps in Afghanistan. He is a senior figure in the Jemaah Islamiya terrorist organization and is believed to have been one of the masterminds behind the bombings of two night clubs in Bali, which killed 202 people, mostly Australians, including seven U.S. citizens.

Of the known leadership of Jemaah Islamiya at large, there is no one with a higher price on his head than Dulmatin. He is one of the most important al-Qaeda-trained operatives at large, and, of equal importance, he is one of the four top JI leaders known to have sought safe haven in the southern Philippines where JI is regrouping and training a new generation of fighters, according to an Asian terror expert, Zachary Abusa.

Dulmatin was a student activist on his Central Javanese university campus. Coming from a well-to-do family, he dropped out of the university after being drawn into extremist teachings at al-Mukmin, the religious boarding school established by JI founders Abdullah Sungkar and Abu Bakar Ba'asyir.

He fled to Mindanao in the southern Philippines soon after the August 2003 bombing of the JW Marriott hotel in Jakarta. There, he is one of four top JI leaders—including Umar Patek, Zulkifli bin Hir and Abdul Rahman Ayub—who have continued to train members of JI and the Abu Sayyaf group in Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) camps in the Philippines, Abusa said.

In 2005, Dulmatin and Umar Patek ordered Abdullah Sonata, a JI operative in Central Java who was arrested in conjunction with the September 4, 2004 Australian Embassy bombing, to dispatch additional JI members to Mindanao for training. He has also called for JI suicide bombers to be sent to the Philippines for operations.

Abusa said Dulmatin, along with Zulkarnaen and Abu Rusdan, was designated for involvement in terrorism by the U.S. Department of the Treasury in April, and placed on the UN's 1267 Committee for terrorist financing in early 2005.