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US sends Guam troops to fight Philippines rebels
The United States has sent troops from Guam to the southern Philippines to help the nation fight the terrorist group Abu Sayyaf. Our reporter in the Northern Marianas, Gemma Casas, reports Major General Donald Goldhorn saying members of the Guam National Guard have been training soldiers in the Philippines' southern province of Jolo to fight the Abu Sayyaf group. The US considers Abu Sayyaf a terrorist group because of its involvement in bombings, kidnapping, rapes and extortion activities in the Philippines and other South East Asian nations. The major says the Guam guards will stay in Jolo for six months in an overall deployment of two years. He says the US considers Jolo an important mission to keep security in the Asia-Pacific region. The Abu Sayyaf gained notoriety in 2000 when its members, armed with M-16s and rocket launchers, abducted 21 European tourists in Malaysia's Sipadan Island. They tortured the victims and beheaded an American tourist. The hostages were only freed after millions of dollars in ransom were paid. A Filipina broadcast journalist and her crew are believed to have been abducted by the Abu Sayyaf group on Monday. Posted by: Fred 2008-06-12 |
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