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| Southeast Asia |
| Local Abu Sayyaf leader killed in Sacol |
| 2006-04-05 |
| A SUSPECTED leader of the Al Qaida-linked Abu Sayyaf Group and his brother were killed in a fierce clash with government troops at the island village of Sacol in Zamboanga City, military officials said yesterday. But the security forces lost one of the militiamen who accompanied them to verify civilian reports that Abu Sayyaf rebels were in the small island just off the city. Col. Edgardo Gidaya, commander of Task Force Zamboanga, identified the Abu Sayyaf leader as Romy Akilan, who operates in Basilan with a band of 60 rebels, and his brother Patta Akilan. The militiaman was identified as Mujid Ammang, who accompanied troops who were sent to the village Monday afternoon after civilians complained of heavily armed men on the island which has often served as an Abu Sayyaf refuge. “Security forces are now conducting pursuit operation to track down other members of the group,” Gidaya said, adding some firearms were recovered from the scene of the fighting. Earlier, Army spokesman Maj. Bartolome Bacarro said another ASG member, Kahal Asmad, alias Bua Akmad, was arrested by a combined team of the military and police intelligence agents in Isabela City. Asmad, who guarded the hostages who were abducted from a beach resort in Sabah, Malaysia in 2000, had admitted he was the leader of Team Zero, a group of pirates who operate around the island of Tapul. It was during the time that he was approached by a certain Jaja, said to be leader of another armed group based in Balloh Island, also in Tapul, Sulu, who asked him to guard the hostages from Sabah, Malaysia with his men. He and his group then became a part of Abu Sayyaf which has been blamed for series of terrorist attacks in the country. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |