ZAMBOANGA CITY, 26 December 2004 — Security forces seized a cache of weapons and arrested three suspected Abu Sayyaf members in a raid on the remote southern Philippine island of Sitangkai, a military spokesman said yesterday.
Capt. Rommel Abrau said soldiers, backed by patrol boats, swooped down Thursday on the villages of Siantok Panamao and Siantok Talipao where the trio had been arrested separately. “The arrest yielded many rifles, small arms and assorted ammunition, including a radio communication set and various camouflage uniform and combat paraphernalia,” Abrau told Arab News.
He said joint marine and naval forces raided the villages after intelligence reports suggested that Abu Sayyaf chieftain Khadaffy Janjalani was spotted there.
But soldiers did not find the elusive terrorist leader, blamed for the spate of killings and bombings in the southern Philippines the past years, he said.
“Operation is still going in the area and troops are hunting down Abu Sayyaf terrorists. Civilians are cooperating with us and some of them even provided the military information about suspected terrorists and their supporters in Sitangkai,” Abrau said.
He said the trio - Halimao Hadjiula, 42; Duran Amsajid, 61; and Said Abdulrhiman, 47 - are under interrogation.
The separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) reported in its website Friday that Janjalani’s group seized 49 people, including 14 policemen at a beach resort in Sibutu island near Sitangkai.
Sitangkai, part of the Philippines southernmost province of Tawi-Tawi, is close to Sabah, Malaysia.
The MILF said the group seized 25 picnickers and 10 motorcycle riders in Tahing village and later took 14 policemen hostage after they were captured trying to rescue the civilians. The hostage-taking occurred on Nov. 11, but was not reported by the authorities, it said, adding all the victims were later freed unharmed.
The Philippine military asked Malaysia last month to verify intelligence reports that Janjalani and a small group of followers had fled to Sabah to escape a massive government hunt.
Tawi-Tawi Gov. Sadikul Sahali also told the military that Janjalani’s group, composed of about 40 men, had fled to Sabah through Sibutu island.
Security officials also reported that Janjalani and nine of his followers were allegedly killed during a meeting with Jemaah Islamiyah militants last month after government planes bombed their hideout in Datu Piang town in Maguindanao province, but troops found not a single body.
The MILF disputed the reports and said what the military attacked was their stronghold and it left one member dead.
