U.S. Troops Hunting Down JI Bombers In Southern Philippines
Komfie Manalo - All Headline News Foreign Correspondent Jolo, Philippines (AHN) - Philippine security officials on Wednesday said U.S. troops were assisting the Army in a massive manhunt against suspected members of the extremist Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) in southern Philippines. The group, which has ties with al-Qaeda, is believed responsible for a series of bomb attacks in the region. Armed Forces of the Philippines Col. Juancho Saban said the American soldiers who were attached to Filipino Marine units, were not involved in actual combat but only provide valuable intelligence. It is believed JI bomb experts Umar Patek and Dulmatin were being hidden by local terrorist group Abu Sayyaf, which was also responsible for kidnapping foreign nationals and bomb attacks. It is wanted both by the U.S. and the Philippine governments for a seriesof bombings and kidnappings including the deaths of two Americans in 2001. Saban said, "We have an ongoing operations and we are on the trail of the Abu Sayyaf group. They (the U.S. troops) are involved in providing intelligence, but not involved in actual operations. If it weren't for them, we wouldn't have known where to look." In one encounter, government troopers overrun an Abu Sayyaf camp in Jolo, Sulu and recovered materials to manufacture bombs which were believed to have belonged to Dulmatin. Abu Sayyaf chief Khadaffy Janjalani is said to be giving protection to Dulmatin and Pa |
