11 Sayyaf rebels captured in Zamboanga

ZAMBOANGA CITY — After two weeks of surveillance, authorities arrested here early yesterday morning 11 suspected Abu Sayyaf bandits believed to be fleeing government forces in nearby Basilan island.

The 11 alleged bandits were on board a speedboat that was seen crossing the Basilan Strait shortly after midnight Friday. They were chased by combined Navy and Marines troopers and were forced to land in Sta. Catalina, a coastal village here populated mostly by Muslims.

Army Capt. Noel Detoyato, deputy spokesman for the military’s Southern Command, said the suspected Abu Sayyaf members were cornered in a safehouse at Sta. Catalina. Seized from them were two automatic rifles, a fragmentation grenade and several documents.

He said seven of the 11 have been positively identified but he refused to reveal their names.

The military has been keeping a tight watch over the Basilan Strait, anticipating the flight of the bandits who are now being pursued by elite Filipino troops assisted by members of the US Special Forces.

The bandits are still holding hostage an American missionary couple Martin and Gracia Burnham and Filipina nurse Deborah Yap in the thick forests of Basilan.

Earlier this week, two suspected Abu Sayyaf members also on board a speedboat were arrested by the Marines. Detoyato said one of the two told the military that the bandit group was planning to take its hostages out of Basilan.

The military clashed with the bandits in Basilan Friday and Saturday as they closed in on the armed band’s hideout. One soldier was wounded in the clash in Tuburan town, and bloodstains found on the trail of the retreating bandits suggested they also suffered casualties.

Detoyato said that in yesterday’s clash, the Abu Sayyaf was supported by fighters of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), a separatist group which has sealed a ceasefire agreement with the government in order to negotiate peace.

He said they were certain that some of the fighters were MILF members since they were identified by former Muslim rebels who are now part of the government forces.

The military has made headway in its search of the bandits with the help of the unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and the P-3 Orion spyplane loaned to it by American troops.

"The Orion and the UAVs are really a big help to the AFP. They have been giving vital information on the location of the terrorists," Detoyato said.

The US aircraft have been providing aerial reconnaissance to local troops whose hunt for the Abu Sayyaf has been hampered by the thick forest cover of the island. Since their deployment in recent weeks, the number of clashes between the military and the bandits had increased.

However, Detoyato refused to elaborate on how the US aircraft had helped them, saying this was confidential.

The UAV and the Orion plane have been deployed to Basilan as part of the joint Philippine-US military exercises which include operations against the Abu Sayyaf.

The UAVs have been frequently seen flying over this city on their way to Basilan. Their flights overhead have often brought traffic to a standstill as scores of people step out of their homes and vehicles to see the drones.

Although 160 US Special Forces personnel have been deployed to Basilan to help train Filipino troops in hunting the Abu Sayyaf, the Americans were barred from taking part in actual combat except in self-defense. – Roel Pareño, Christina Mendez, AFP