AFP to bring MILF-Abu Sayyaf collusion issue to ceasefire panel

MANILA, Philippines - The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Wednesday said it will bring up the matter of a possible collusion between the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and Abu Sayyaf before a committee monitoring an ongoing truce between the military and secessionist rebels. In an interview, AFP chief Alexander Yano said the military will relay "raw reports" of the possible collusion between the MILF and Abu Sayyaf bandits before the Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH), which he said is the proper channel for the discussion of the issue Yano's statement came three days after Marine soldiers launched an offensive against suspected Abu Sayyaf bandits in Al Barkah town, Basilan. “We have raw reports about it... some wayward elements of the MILF in Basilan that’s also coddling the Abu Sayyaf in Basilan," said Yano, “We will have to bring those information to the proper channels particularly the (CCCH) of the GRP and the MILF. We will expect they’ll have to do something about it, there are mechanisms on the ground that should work," he added. Five Marines soldiers died and 25 others were wounded as the government troops conducted an offensive in Al Barka last Sunday, targeting Abu Sayyaf elements blamed for kidnapping incidents in the province. Following the offensive, the MILF said the offensive was directed at one of its camp and not against the Abu Sayyaf. The group has also denied its troops are in collusion with Abu Sayyaf bandits. In the interview, Yano said his instruction to the Marine soldiers in Basilan is to continue with the pursuit operations against the Abu Sayyaf. He said the rogue MILF rebels who are in alliance with the Abu Sayyaf should be dealt with similarly. About two weeks ago, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo ordered military and police forces to step up anti-kidnapping operations following the rash of kidnap-for-ransom activities by the Abu Sayyaf in Basilan, Sulu and some parts of Zamboaga. “We need to put a stop to this criminal activities... We are running after the Abu Sayyaf. Definitely, its not the other groups that they are running after but if there are other indications of rogue elements of the MILF, then they have to be dealt with similarly. So the operations will go on and there is no let up as far as these operations are concerned," said Yano. Yano said there was no need to deploy more forces to Basilan, noting they have enough troops to go after the terrorists. He said that if commanders request for more personnel, soldiers can be sourced from the adjacent units in the Zamboanga peninsula. “As of now, I have talked to the commanders on the ground. There is no need (to deploy more forces in Basilan)...I guess that in the last series of operations we were on the upper hand. Allthough we suffered some casualties, we are able to inflict considerable damage to the Abu Sayyaf and related groups," said Yano. On reports that a Jemaah Islamiyah terrorist died in last Sunday’s clash against Abu Sayyaf elements in Sulu province, Yano said: “We have such report and we will continue verifying it because we have not recovered yet any dead body." The clash resulted in the wounding of 11 Marine soldiers. “There were reliable reports to that effect so until we have finally confirmed, we cannot say definitely what happened," the military chief said. On the identity of the JI who supposedly perished, Yano said: “As of this time, we have no definite identity of the high-value targets or personalities that were neutralized during those operations. As I’ve said, we are verifying it through our sources, intelligence and other sources so that we can for sure identify if there were really any because the reports as of now are just raw." - GMANews.TV