ZAMBOANGA CITY, 3 November 2003 — The country’s largest separatist Muslim group yesterday said it will not allow criminal groups and terrorists to operate in their territories in the southern Philippines.
Eid Kabalu, spokesman of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), said their forces have been ordered to arrest criminals or terrorists seeking refuge in their strongholds, and this include the Al-Qaeda network of Osama bin Laden and the Southeast Asian terror group Jemaah Islamiyah.
“We will not allow these elements to operate in our areas in Mindanao. We have signed an agreement with the Philippine government that the MILF will assist in efforts to arrest criminals or lawless elements and this include the members of the Al-Qaeda and Jemaah Islamiyah,” Kabalu told the Arab News.
At this time, he said, there are no known international terrorists operating in MILF strongholds. “Three are no terror elements in our areas, so far, but we are always in the lookout for terrorists,” he said.
But Kabalu cautioned the military and the police from mounting offensives against criminals or terrorists inside rebel strongholds without coordinating with the MILF.
“Government forces should coordinate with the MILF ... because we don’t want the police and military ending up battling our fighters who are supposed to help them,” he said.
Defense Secretary Eduardo Ermita earlier said that the government had enlisted the help of the MILF in hunting Jemaah Islamiyah members. Several bombings in the Philippines, including the deadly Dec. 30, 2000 blasts in Metro Manila, have been blamed on Jemaah members.
“We are challenging them (the MILF) to help the government in locating these people and accounting for them in order to free their area of JI elements so that there will be no suspicion that they have relations with JI,” Ermita was quoted in Manila as saying.
Kabalu strongly denied allegations linking the MILF to the Jemaah.
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has also called on the MILF to cut any ties it has with any terrorist group, including the Abu Sayyaf.
