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| Southeast Asia |
| Malaysia on high alert for fleeing Abu Sayyaf rebels |
| 2016-09-25 |
| [Straits Times] Malaysia is on high alert for Abu Sayyaf militants fleeing among hundreds of Filipinos to Sabah, after the Philippine military's offensive in the country. Officials say an estimated 400 are waiting for the "right time" to breach the Eastern Sabah Security Command's security cordon. Federal police special branch director Datuk Seri Mohamad Fuzi Harun said, "The threat is imminent...There is only one direction that they are heading, and it is towards our shores. We will not allow them to enter. Our security forces will arrest them the minute they pass the country's maritime border." Malaysia has deployed more manpower and assets to protect the vast maritime border it shares with the Philippines. General Tan Sri Zulkifeli Mohd Zin said reports that hundreds of Filipinos seeking refuge on islands close to the Malaysian border were credible. He said, ""They are waiting to cross into Sabah and assimilate with their relatives and friends, who stand ready to harbor them." It is thought that as many as 400 of them, including insurgents, are on the islands of Taganak and Bakkungan, hoping to make their way to Sandakan, the second largest town in Sabah. Police picked up 37 Filipinos from the waters off Sandakan last week. 18 of them were from Basilan, while the rest were from Abu Sayyaf stronghold Jolo. |
| Posted by:ryuge |