A moment of silence for Columbia’s crew

They will not forget fallen comrades.

About 200 American troops in Zamboanga City paused for a moment of silence yesterday to honor the seven crewmembers of the space shuttle Columbia who — like them — were on a mission.

US military spokesman Capt. Steve Wollman said they were simply stunned and shocked as news of the tragedy spilled over international television news channels.

"The moment we heard that and learned about the fate of the seven great people, we paused for silence. It was unfortunate," he said.

So far, the US military has not scheduled memorial services for the US soldiers to commemorate the tragedy, Wollman added.

The Columbia broke apart and disintegrated high up in the sky over Texas while coming in for a landing in Florida last Saturday. Officials are investigating what went wrong.

The 200 US soldiers in Zamboanga are overseeing civil infrastructure projects, which are part of Washington’s security commitment to the Philippines, a long-time US ally.

Officials said an additional 100 US soldiers are to arrive late this month for joint exercises to train and equip Philippine troops in counter-terrorism.

Early last year, a thousand US troops spent six months mainly in nearby Basilan province to assist the Philippine military against the Abu Sayyaf Islamist kidnap gang, linked to Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaeda terrorist network.

The exercises resulted in the killing of a flamboyant Abu Sayyaf leader and spokesman, Abu Sabaya, and the rescue of American missionary, Gracia Burnham. Burnham’s husband, Martin, and Filipina nurse Edibora Yap were killed in the rescue attempt.

The Abu Sayyaf styles itself as an Islamic rebel group fighting for an independent Muslim state in Mindanao but their activities are mainly kidnapping-for-ransom.

The group had been linked to the al-Qaeda terrorist network of Osama bin Laden and is considered a terrorist organization by the United States.

An Abu Sayyaf faction in Sulu province has been holding three Indonesian sailors and four Filipino Christian preachers hostage for several months now.

Last year, the US government offered a reward of up to $5 million for the capture of five top Abu Sayyaf leaders, indicted by a US grand jury for kidnapping the Burnhams and another American, Guillermo Sobero, who was beheaded by the gunmen in June 2001.