Upon disembarking from a Saudia plane at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Pasay City, the group’s spokesman, who identified himself as engineer Ali Pangandan Daranginn, told reporters they were trained in military tactics at Camp Alsansa in Madinah, Al-Munawara in Saudi Arabia.
However, Daranginn refused to elaborate on the kind of military training they had received or whether it was sanctioned by Saudi authorities.
In a related development, immigration authorities blacklisted 28 foreigners on suspicion of having links with Bin Laden’s al-Qaeda terrorist network.
Intelligence reports identified those in the blacklist as having taken part in terrorist attacks in Southeast Asia in the past three years, including the bombing of the Philippine Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia in 1999 and the 2000 Rizal Day bombings in Metro Manila.
While queuing at the immigration counter, the 17 Filipinos who arrived from Saudi Arabia kept praising Bin Laden, whom they called a "saint" and "a champion of the oppressed," and referred to US President George W. Bush as "drunk with power, who wants to control the world."
Appearing to be between the ages of 25 and 30, the 17 readily posed for photographs upon seeing reporters at the airport, and Daranginn acceded to be interviewed to make known their pro-Bin Laden stance.
Immigration agents immediately alerted the intelligence community on the arrival of the 17, who had not given their names nor shown their passports to reporters.
Meanwhile, Immigration Commissioner Andrea Domingo said 28 suspected terrorists were named in a report on al-Qaeda’s operations in Southeast Asia, which she obtained from the ASEAN anti-terrorism summit in Bangkok, Thailand last week.
Some of them are: Zamburi Putti, Semi Sedubun, Surya Setiwan, Uci Sanusi, Nurti Islumadi, Ibrahim Wahab, Iswadi Ibrahim Hasan Nuyadin, Irwan Imman Sumadra, Armin Youfri Vos, Jabir Abar, Masa Abdul Jabar, Asep Kurniawan, Diki Agung Duni, Abu Umar Imman Samudra, Abu Bakar Baasyir, and Parlindungan Siregar.
Domingo said she has ordered immigration officers at the country’s various airport and seaports to be on the lookout for the 28 who are mostly Indonesians
Domingo said some of the those in the blacklist are already in police custody and detained in the countries where they have been arrested.
Domingo said the blacklisted aliens had participated the bombing of the Jakarta Stock Exchange and that of the Philippine Embassy in Indonesia in 1999, the attack on Christian churches in Indonesia in 2000, and the Rizal Day bombings in Metro Manila in the same year.
Last March 7, the immigration bureau blacklisted nine suspected members of al-Qaeda, who are believed to be involved in the attack on the USS Cole at Aden in Yemen, the Rizal Day bombings in Metro Manila, and the aborted plot to bomb Western embassies in Singapore, all in 2000.
Senior Superintendent Jaime Caringal, commander of Task Force Sanlahi, flew to Singapore yesterday to gather more information on the extent of Bin Laden’s terrorist network in Southeast Asia.
Caringal told reporters he will coordinate with Singapore police officials to establish al-Qaeda’s links with the region’s terrorists.
"This is a continuing mission to determine the extent of the terrorists’ network in the region as part of our commitment to help in the crackdown of terrorist networks operating in the country," he said.
The three Indonesians who were arrested at NAIA three weeks ago for illegal possession of explosives are preparing to post bail for their temporary liberty.
However, Caringal said Agus Dwikarno, Tamsil Linrung and Abdul Rafas cannot leave the country because they are charged with violating immigration laws.
"They violated terms during their stay in the country," he said. "The offense is not bailable under Philippine laws."
Dwikarno, Linrung and Balfas are under heavy guard at the detention center of the Philippine National Police Intelligence Group at Camp Crame in Quezon City.
Airport police apprehended Dwikarno and the two other suspected terrorists as they passed through a metal detector at the departure area.
Seized from them were explosive materials and other sophisticated equipment which airport security men believe are used in terrorist operations.
Police believe the three Indonesians belong to the Southeast Asian branch of al-Qaeda.
Intelligence sources told The STAR the three arrived in the country from Bangkok last March 11 aboard a Lufthansa German Airlines flight.
Earlier, Domingo placed in the immigration blacklist six suspected leaders of al-Qaeda to prevent them from entering the country.
Four of the suspects were: Ruiduan Isamuddin, Yazid Sufaat Moussaqui, and Abu Bakar Bashir, all Indonesians; and Wall Khan Amin Shah, an Afghan.
Four are jailed in the country: Fathur Rohman al Ghozi and Faz bin Abu Bakar Rafana, both Indonesians; Ramzi Yousef, a Kuwaiti; and Abdul Murad, a Pakistani.
Domingo said the six who remain at large are the object of a manhunt by police forces worldwide.
"They were placed both in the blacklist and watchlist to ensure that they won’t be able to come here if they are abroad or they will be arrested if they are already in the Philippines," she said.
Domingo said investigations have confirmed the involvement of the suspects in terror plots hatched by al-Qaeda cells in Southeast Asia, including the attack on the American warship USS Cole in Yemen and the Dec. 30, 2000 Rizal Day bombings in Metro Manila.
Quoting intelligence reports, Domingo said Isamuddin, alias Hambali, is al-Qaeda’s point man in Southeast Asia, and the right-hand man of the leader of Jemaah Islamiyah, which planned the Rizal Day bombings that killed 23 people.
The Jemaah Islamiyah is a secret Islamic organization suspected of possible links with Bin Laden and his al-Qaeda network, prime suspects in last year’s Sept. 11 attacks on the United States.
Singapore has detained 12 of its citizens and one Malaysian for allegedly plotting to bomb US targets in the city-state, while Malaysia has arrested dozens of suspects. — With AFP report