The President said the police and military have been instructed to give no quarter to terrorist groups like the Abu Sayyaf.
Arrested earlier this week were Abdulbasit Usman, 28 and Moamar Esmael, 25. Mrs. Arroyo said their capture was the result of the government’s relentless efforts.
"No compromise, no quarter given. Our war against terrorism is pushing our targets up against the wall," the President said during the presentation of the suspects at Malacañang yesterday.
Both men are believed to be associates of Mohammad Nur Umog, alias Abu Muslim al-Ghazie, a member of the Abu Sayyaf special operations group and alleged mastermind of the bombing of the Fitmart mall in General Santos City last April 21. Al-Ghazie was arrested in Cotabato City last May 21.
Usman and Esmael, flanked by police guards, stared blankly as the President praised their captors.
Usman, a former member of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), was a bomb expert who trained with terrorist cells in Afghanistan, police said. Esmael was identified as the bomb carrier.
The bomb attack on the mall killed 16 and wounded 61 others.
"Their action sought to undermine our republic, but we fought back," Mrs. Arroyo said. "Our contribution to the global campaign against terrorism continues to bear fruit. We will not be cowed, we will hunt them down and bring them to justice."
She stressed that the war on terror does not end with the two arrests.
"To our men and women in uniform, I say good work and I ask for more of what you have already accomplished," the President said.
The arrests of Usman and Esmael foiled another wave of bomb attacks allegedly being plotted by the Abu Sayyaf, police said.
Last Sunday, the raiding team seized from Usman’s hideout a pistol, three mortar shells, blasting caps and wires and MILF documents.
The following day, police captured Esmael in General Santos. Seized from the suspect were a pistol and a bomb-making manual. – Marichu Villanueva