BASILAN (Zamboanga Journal / 01 Aug) The Philippine military on Tuesday ordered an intensified operation in the southern island of Jolo to flush out members of the Abu Sayyaf group and Jemaah Islamiya, officials said.
Major General Gabriel Habacon, chief of the Southern Command, ordered troops to assault the terrorist groups, blamed for the spate of attacks and kidnappings in the restive region.
“The assault operation on these terrorist groups is in accordance with the all-out war campaign that was recently launched by the government,” Habacon said in a statement.
The military said that “top-of-the-list” terrorist groups as well as some high-ranking terrorist leaders were allegedly in the town of Indanan.
“The Southern Command has already designed an extensive offensive plot for the capture of these elements to prevent them from performing terrorist activities and permanently disperse them in the region,” he said.
Habacon did not say if there were clashes, but he ordered infantry and marine troops on the island to track down the terrorists.
“We have been planning and working for months to find and track the terrorist leadership and the time is now,” he said.
He did not say if troops were pursuing Khadaffy Janjalani, the chieftain of the Abu Sayyaf group, and two Jemaah Islamiya bombers Umar Patek and Dulmatin, who were earlier reported to be hiding in Jolo. The duo was tagged as behind the 2002 Bali bombings.
The offensive came just a day after a US Orion spy plane was spotted flying over in the southern Philippine port city of Zamboanga, where US soldiers involved in joint anti-terrorism training with Filipino troops are based. A small contingent is also in Jolo island.
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