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Philippine troops capture another Abu Sayyaf suspect
Army troops on Friday captured an alleged Abu Sayyaf member suspected in the killings of eight fishermen last year, a day after arresting a senior member of the extremist Muslim group, the military said. Two in one week, way to go! Maid Sampang was seized after a brief chase on Balukbaluk islet, west of the southern island of Basilan, by troops who raided his home there, which was used as a hideout for guerrillas fleeing military operations on Basilan, said Col. Bonifacio Ramos. Troops recovered an M-16 assault rifle and were pursuing other gunmen who escaped, he said. Fishermen had alerted the troops that seven armed men were staying at the house of Sampang, who is secretary of the local village council. You knew where he lived, but didn't go to pick him up until you heard seven gunnies were visiting? Ramos claimed that Sampang was involved in the killings of eight fishermen who were shot in their boat off Basilan in late October. Authorities initially blamed pirates for that attack. On Thursday, army intelligence agents and police in Zamboanga city on the main southern island of Mindanao captured Merang Abante, a senior Abu Sayyaf member who carried a 1 million peso (US$18,800) bounty on his head. Lt. Col. Daniel Lucero, spokesman for the military's Southern Command, said Abante was nabbed near the city's busy port, but gave no other details. The Abu Sayyaf has earned notoriety for kidnappings, including of three Americans and 17 Filipinos from a resort in May 2001. The group is currently holding four female members of the Christian sect Jehovah's Witnesses and three Indonesia tugboat sailors kidnapped last year. The United States has included the Abu Sayyaf on its list of foreign terrorists and has indicted 10 of its top leaders and members, but Abante is not among them. - AP Tag um and bag um Posted by: Steve 2003-01-03 |
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