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| Southeast Asia |
| In Philippines, U.S. making progress in war on terror |
| 2007-02-15 |
| CAMP BAUTISTA, Philippines — Thousands of miles from the bazaars of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan, U.S. military forces are quietly helping defeat terrorists in the jungles of the southern Philippines, a forgotten front in the global war on terrorism. Forgotten. As in "no media around". Working behind the scenes with a rejuvenated Philippine military, U.S. special forces have helped kill, capture or rout hundreds of Abu Sayyaf guerrillas who have links to the Islamic terror groups Jemaah Islamiyah and al-Qaeda, Philippine and U.S. military commanders say. The Abu Sayyaf, responsible for 16 years of bombings, kidnappings and beheadings in the southern Philippines, has been forced to flee into the mountainous terrain here on Jolo island in the remote Sulu Archipelago. But its numbers are dwindling and its leadership almost wiped out, says Brig. Gen. Ruperto Pabustan, commander of Philippine special forces on Jolo. "They are on the run," Pabustan says. "They are evading our troops now, and they are short of ammunition. … We are slowly neutralizing Abu Sayyaf." American officials agree. "I've felt a turn in the tide," says Kristie Kenney, U.S. ambassador to the Philippines. "There are a lot of good things going on." Backed by U.S. intelligence, equipment and training, Philippine forces have killed or captured 200 of the 400 Abu Sayyaf fighters on Jolo since they began Operation Ultimatum last August, Pabustan says. Among the dead are Abu Sayyaf leader Khadafi Janjalani, whose corpse was identified in January four months after he suffered fatal wounds in a firefight with Philippine forces. Abu Sayyaf military planner Abu Solaiman was killed by Philippine special forces Jan. 16. "They've been kicking some butt," says U.S. Army Maj. Kevin Brown, a member of the Utah National Guard based at this Philippine military camp on Jolo. "I think they're close to breaking this thing open." Abu Sayyaf is the most notorious of several militant groups fighting to create a fundamentalist Muslim state in the Philippines. It mutated over time into a criminal gang, engaged mostly in lucrative kidnappings. Hiding on Jolo with the Abu Sayyaf survivors are a handful — fewer than 10 — members of Jemaah Islamiyah, including two suspects in the 2002 Bali bombing, the Philippines government says. U.S. forces have maintained a low profile in the southern Philippines since early 2002. Numbers fluctuate, but there are now about 450 — more than half of them members of the special forces. The U.S. force is split between Jolo and Zamboanga city on the large island of Mindanao, says U.S. Air Force Maj. John Redfield, U.S. military spokesman in Zamboanga. In 2002 they helped drive Abu Sayyaf off the island of Basilan. "The U.S. has done much better than the critics expected," says Philippines specialist Kit Collier, visiting fellow at Australian National University. "Five years ago, when U.S. troops were first sent to Basilan, many predicted 'a new Afghanistan.' Instead, the security environment there has been transformed." The U.S. role is controversial. The Philippine constitution forbids foreign troops from establishing bases in the Philippines and, by many interpretations, bars them from combat. So U.S. forces have played a limited role in areas such as: •Fostering goodwill among the predominantly Muslim communities by conducting medical missions, paving roads and refurbishing schools."We have provided some assistance, but the AFP is doing the heavy lifting," says U.S. Army Col. David Maxwell, commander of the U.S. military task force in the southern Philippines. Critics say military operations and aid projects aren't enough. The Muslims of the southern Philippines — a minority in a majority Christian country — have long-standing grievances. They are among the poorest people in the Philippines. They have long been ignored by the Christian political elite in Manila. Promised development money rarely arrives. "I don't care how many medical missions the Americans do," says Astrid Tuminez, researcher with the U.S. Institute of Peace, a government-funded organization trying to help arrange a peace deal between the Muslim separatists and the government. "Those grievances are still there." I'm sure the Special Forces could walk around handing out million dollar bills and Astrid would still be pissed. |
| Posted by:tu3031 |
| #5 It's hard to do the work necessary to succeed outside an Islamic community when you're banging your head against the floor five times a day and following all the other rules Islam imposes upon its believers. TRUE Islam is incompatible with advanced, technical civilization. You either have to be a seventh-century farmer, an imam living off the sweat of other men's brows, or a thief. Islam is a death sentence for its followers, yet none of them can understand that. My sympathy meter is still registering in the negative whenever Islam is mentioned. |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2007-02-15 15:13 |
| #4 #1/. What, if anything, is different about the Philippine flavor of Islam? Just the one flavour, Sir, different strengths. |
| Posted by: Crinesh Ulomoling5347 2007-02-15 13:06 |
| #3 Good to hear. One more rats nest taken out. |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2007-02-15 12:51 |
| #2 #1 The Muslims of the southern Philippines — a minority in a majority Christian country Here's your answer. |
| Posted by: gromgoru 2007-02-15 12:47 |
| #1 I love this story -- more in the steady stream of good news for those who care to hear it. How different, psychologically and culturally, is the Philippine Muslim Enemy from the Arabian/Persian Muslim Enemy? What, if anything, is different about the Philippine flavor of Islam? |
| Posted by: Captain Lewis 2007-02-15 11:37 |