Abu Sayyaf leader, brod killed in clash

ZAMBOANGA CITY — A suspected leader of the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf and his brother and a government militiaman were killed Monday in an encounter on Sacol Island, 1.2 nautical miles east of this port city, the military said.

The clash broke out a day before new US Ambassador Kristie Kenney arrived here en route to Basilan for her first official out-of-town trip.

Col. Edgardo Gidaya, chief of the anti-terror Task Force Zamboanga, said the encounter erupted in Sitio Camias, Barangay Pasilmanta when patrolling members of the Alpha Company and the Citizen Armed Forces Geographical Unit (CAFGU) chanced upon eight heavily armed men who turned out to be Abu Sayyaf rebels.

The clash left Abu Sayyaf commander Romy Akilan and his brother, Tatta, dead. The slain CAFGU member was identified as Mujib Ama.

Gidaya believes that Akilan’s group had come from Basilan and was temporarily staying on the island, which he said is a "known jump-off point of the Abu Sayyaf, pirates and other lawless groups."

Gidaya said the military was still pursuing Akilan’s followers who are believed to be still hiding on the island. — Roel Pareño