3 Abus killed in Sulu; full alert in Mindanao

MANILA, Philippines – Police and military units in Mindanao were placed on full alert status yesterday to counter any retaliatory attacks on government forces after the killing of an Abu Sayyaf leader and two other suspects in a shootout. 

Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Jesus Verzosa ordered all police units in Mindanao to prepare for attacks from Abu Sayyaf bandits.

Verzosa said the full alert status of all PNP units and offices in the whole of Mindanao took effect at midnight Sunday.

“I have declared, as PNP chief, a full alert status against possible retaliatory terrorist action of the Abu Sayyaf,” said Verzosa.

The Armed Forces Western Mindanao Command (Wes-mincom) was also placed on full alert status yesterday to brace for possible retaliatory attacks by the Abu Sayyaf following the death of three of its members during a police operation in Maimbung, Sulu, according to Wesmincom commander Lt. Gen. Benjamin Dolorfino. Full alert places all troops on standby.

When asked when they would lift the alert status, Dolorfino said it would depend on the security situation on the ground.

Police units gunned down Abu Sayyaf leader Gafur Jumdail and his two men in an encounter in Maimbung, Sulu at around midnight last Sunday.

Police said Jumdail and other Abu Sayyaf leaders identified as Albader Parad, Umbra Jumdail, Tuan Walis and Sulayman Patta were part of the 30-man group that kidnapped ABS-CBN reporter Ces Drilon, her two cameramen Jimmy Encarnacion and Angelo Valderama, and their guide university professor Octavio Dinampo on June 8, 2008.

The four hostages were freed separately a week later allegedly after a large ransom was paid.

The dead Abu Sayyaf leader was also implicated in the January 2009 kidnappings of a Filipino, Swiss and Italian Red Cross workers in Sulu.

The three Red Cross workers were released separately after authorities allegedly paid ransom to the bandits.

PNP spokesman Senior Superintendent Agrimero Cruz Jr. said elements of the Special Action Force (SAF) and Directorate for Integrated Police Operations were conducting intelligence operations against Jumdail and a Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) member identified only as Marwan, a Malaysian, when the encounter took place.

JI, which is linked to the al-Qaeda group, is an international terrorist organization that was founded in Indonesia.

Police said Marwan was not with the group at the time of the encounter. His real name is Zulkifli bin Hir and he is a US-trained engineer. The US has offered a $5-million reward for his capture.

Marwan is believed to have been hiding with the Abu Sayyaf in the southern Philippines for years.

The US State Department says Marwan is believed to be a leader of the militant organization Kumpulun Mujahidin Malaysia and a member of the central command of JI that was blamed for numerous regional attacks, including the 2002 Bali nightclub bombings in Indonesia, where more than 200 people were killed.

The Army said the military would intensify intelligence operations to stop any plans of the Abu Sayyaf to get back at the security forces.

“Commanders on the ground normally raise alert level during incidents like this… The best way to prepare is through better intelligence in order to preempt enemy counteractions,” Army spokesman Col. Antonio Parlade Jr. said.

Last February, government troops killed six Abu Sayyaf members, including its senior leader Albader Parad, in an encounter also in Maimbung, Sulu.

Parad was tagged in a series of kidnappings including that of Red Cross workers Filipino Marie Jean Lacaba, Italian national Eugenio Vagni, and Swiss national Andreas Notter last year.

In the same month, security forces also nabbed suspected Abu Sayyaf member Jumadail Arad, a suspect in the abduction of American missionaries Martin and Gracia Burnham in Palawan in 2001.

Government troops have also foiled an attempt by Abu Sayyaf allies to stage a series of bombings in Metro Manila with the capture of Abdulrahman Samuel, Joher Ibrahim, and Mujahid Ibrahim in Taguig City last March.

The three are members of a terror cell led by Abdul Basit Usman, who is believed to have connections with the JI and the Abu Sayyaf.

It was also in March when Air Force troops nabbed Abu Sayyaf member Burrong Rasul Barro in Zamboanga City. Barro, who used the alias “Abu Mohammad,” was tagged in the abduction of six Jehovah’s Witness members on Aug. 20, 2002 in Jolo, Sulu.

Latest military estimates showed that there are around 400 remaining Abu Sayyaf members in the country. – With Alexis Romero, Roel Pareño AP