ZAMBOANGA CITY — Authorities yesterday said they have detained a Palestinian man in this southern Philippine city on suspicion that he had helped train Abu Sayyaf militants in the troubled island of Jolo.

Fawaz Azzur was arrested on Saturday as he arrived at the Zamboanga International Airport from Sandakan, Malaysia, but his case was made public only yesterday as he was presented to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in Zamboanga.

Immigration Commissioner Alipio Fernandez said Fawaz was taken into custody by immigration agents at the Zamboanga airport because he did not have a visa.

During investigation, Fawaz was found to have taken a circuitous journey that took him to Russia, Thailand, Malaysia and the Philippines, the officials said.

Regional police chief Vidal Querol said Fawaz had originally come from Bangkok. He then traveled to Sandakan but immediately went on to Zamboanga.

Fawaz, who claimed to have been born in Kuwait but holds a Palestinian passport, said he was just a salesman. He told investigators he was just in the Philippines to visit relatives.

Fernandez said Fawaz was about to be sent back on the next flight to Malaysia for arriving without a visa but was detained after two former Abu Sayyaf militants, who have turned state witness, claimed they saw the Palestinian work with the Abu Sayyaf in Jolo Island in 2000.

They alleged that Fawaz was one of six “Arab-looking foreigners” who encouraged the Abu Sayyaf to begin a high-profile spate of kidnapping and attacks to gain international media attention and embarrass the Philippine government.

“Fawaz Azzur was positively identified by the two former Abu Sayyaf militants as one of those who trained them in Jolo. He is suspected to be an Al-Qaeda operative,” an investigator told Arab News.

Arroyo congratulated officials for the arrest.

“This is a very important blow against terrorism,” Arroyo said, shaking the hands of military and police officials.

During the media presentation, Querol also alleged that Fawaz was involved in unspecified terror plots. As Querol spoke, the man’s eyes widened in apparent surprise over the allegations against him, then smiled.

Security officials said they suspect Fawaz returned to the Philippines to further train local insurgents or to take part in an attack.

Investigators said they found Fawaz’s route baffling. He started in Russia, flew to Thailand and took a train to Malaysia, where he shuttled between two areas before boarding a plane to Zamboanga, officials said.

High Alert

Philippine authorities have been alert for the possible entry of foreign Islamic militants who could join Abu Sayyaf bombing plots. The notoriously brutal group has threatened attacks to avenge the deaths of commanders killed in a botched jailbreak two weeks ago.

Intelligence officials say one plan by the Abu Sayyaf, together with the Southeast Asian militant group Jemaah Islamiyah and local Muslim converts, was to stage two separate car bomb attacks during the recent Easter holidays.

Security was tight yesterday and soldiers, armed with automatic weapons, were scattered in Zamboanga City, scene of previous Abu Sayyaf attacks.

The Abu Sayyaf was originally fighting for a Muslim self-rule, but lately resorted to banditry and terrorism. The Abu Sayyaf, which also appears on the United States’ list of terror groups, claimed responsibility for a bomb attack that killed more than 100 people on a ferry leaving Manila in February last year, in the worst known terrorist attack in the Philippines.

The group, which broke away from the former separatist rebel Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), claimed responsibility for the February 14 bombings of buses in Manila and the southern city of Davao, and the Gaisano shopping mall in General Santos, which killed 11 people and left over 100 injured.

“Contaminated Converts”

In Manila, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has been tasked by the Department of Justice to monitor returning Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) reportedly “contaminated” by the terrorist mentality.

NBI Director Reynaldo Wycoco said they would coordinate with the Bureau of Immigration in overseeing Philippine ports of entry to look out for possible terrorists.

In the directive issued Wednesday, immigration and NBI officials were ordered to monitor the entry of OFWs coming from the Middle East.

Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez also directed the agencies to look out for students from Pakistan who had studied in various Islamic schools.

“This is necessary because intelligence reports show that some of the so-called Balik-Islams (Muslim converts) became Muslim extremists and terrorists when they returned to the Philippines,” Gonzalez said in the memorandum.

Filipino Muslim community leaders have criticized the memorandum saying it sends the wrong signal to local Muslims. (Additional input from agencies & Inquirer News Service)