June 17, 2002, The Philippine Star, U.S. Troops Airlift Wounded Soldiers After Abu Sayyaf Clash,

June 17, 2002, The Philippine Star, U.S. Troops Airlift Wounded Soldiers After Abu Sayyaf Clash,

Zamboanga City, June 17, 2002(STAR) 06/17 11:06:52 AM - US military helicopters airlifted four wounded Philippine soldiers off the strife-torn island of Basilan Sunday after a clash with Abu Sayyaf rebels, the military said.

The gunfight took place in Tuburan town on Basilan, leaving one Abu Sayyaf member dead and four Filipinos injured, local military commander Colonel Alexander Aleo said.

The injured soldiers were carried to a clearing outside Tuburan from where a US Pave Hawk helicopter airlifted them to a military hospital in Zamboanga City, he said.

Aleo said that many more Abu Sayyaf were likely killed or injured in the battle, but were dragged off by their comrades. One rifle and several backpacks were recovered from the scene.

The Abu Sayyaf has been the target of a joint US-Philippines military operation after they seized dozens of hostages, including US citizens, from a holiday resort. They have also been linked to the al-Qaeda network of Osama bin Laden.

Sporadic fighting was still ongoing in outskirts of Tuburan, Aleo said. "We will continue our operations here and we will not relent."

Another two Abu Sayyaf members were killed and one soldier wounded later Sunday as troops pursued a band of the rebels who had held three hostages, including two Americans, in the southern province of Zamboanga del Norte.

A botched rescue attempt on June 7 ended in the death of two of the hostages -- US missionary Martin Burnham and Filipina nurse Ediborah Yap. Burnham's wife, Gracia was wounded in the leg but freed.

Since then, the military has intensified operations against the Abu Sayyaf in Zamboanga del Norte, Basilan and the Sulu islands.

The military said they could not confirm if the guerrillas slain in Zamboanga del Norte included the leaders of the kidnap group.

Over a thousand US troops are in the southern Philippines to help in the campaign against the Abu Sayyaf who are notorious for kidnapping foreigners and Christians and holding them for ransom.

Although the Americans provide training and advice to Filipino troops, they are barred from joining in actual combat except in self-defense.

Aleo said the targets of the government assault in Basilan were Isnilon Hapilon and Hamsiraji Sali, two of five Abu Sayyaf leaders for whom the US government is offering a reward of up to five million dollars for information leading to their capture.

Another Abu Sayyaf leader on the US list, Abu Sabaya, is being hunted in Zamboanga del Norte.

Two Abus killed in Sirawai encounter 06/17 1:41:21 PM

Two members of the Abu Sayyaf bandit group were killed by government troops in an encounter in Sirawai, Zamboanga del Sur.

Meanwhile, the military insisted that Abu Sayyaf spokesperson Abu Sabaya has not escaped from the Sirawai area since soldiers fought his band of bandits on June 7 that resulted in the recovery of American hostage Gracia Burnham but led to the death of her husband, Martin, and Filipino nurse Ediborah Yap.

US troops get popular support in troubled South 06/17 10:00:18 AM

LAMITAN, (AFP) - American troops deployed in the southern Philippines have become heroes to the local people -- without firing a single shot in combat.

Washington had deployed more than 1,000 US soldiers to train and assist the local army against Abu Sayyaf guerrillas in an extension of the "war on terror," but they were not allowed to join combat patrols in the rebel stronghold of Basilan island.

Residents here say the US presence has given them a sense of security following a rash of kidnappings by the Abu Sayyaf guerrillas notorious for beheading Christian captives and allegedly linked to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network.

The gunmen have retreated to their jungle lairs after President Gloria Arroyo ordered a final push when a year-long hostage crisis led to the deaths of US Christian missionary Martin Burnham and a Filipina nurse.

Although the US troops are due to pack their bags by the end of July, local officials are asking Arroyo to extend their stay.

Wahab Akbar, governor of the impoverished mostly Muslim Basilan island, said relative peace had returned to the area when the Americans landed in January.

Akbar said he had sent a request to the presidential palace to allow the US troops to stay beyond their six-month tour of duty.

"It is supported by all sectors," Akbar said.

"We see the situation is improving with the presence of the American forces," said Father Cirilo Nacorda, parish priest of Basilan's Lamitan town which was besieged by the rebels last year.

The mayor of Zamboanga city, which hosts the military's southern command and is the staging base for the exercises, echoed the views.

"The people are hoping. They want (the American deployment) to be extended," said mayor Maria Clara Lobregat.

She said activists who stage almost daily protests in Manila against the US presence, "don't understand because they don't know what it is like here with the Abu Sayyaf."

Major Richard Sater, spokesman of US forces in the south, said the troops had been warmly received.

"We have the support of the local residents here. We are being greeted every morning by the people and we appreciate the hospitality that they are showing to us," he said as he toured US infrastructure projects in the south.

More than 1,000 US troops are deployed in the south, most of them training and advising local soldiers in hunting the Abu Sayyaf.

About 340 US military engineers are working on infrastructure projects aimed at helping communities and speeding up the hunt for the Abu Sayyaf.

While the Americans have brought in advanced equipment and modern combat techniques.

Many people say their very presence has deterred the Abu Sayyaf from launching new attacks.

"Once the Americans came, the Abu Sayyaf fled. They are afraid of the US troops," a schoolteacher in Basilan said.

"Even if they are not fighting, we know they are here," said Lobregat, crediting the US presence for reinvigorating her city which had suffered following a spate of bomb blasts and Abu Sayyaf threats.

Aside from providing security, Lobregat said money spent by US troops and their government had helped the local economy.

The road and water projects the Americans are building on Basilan has further boosted their popularity.

Unlike Philippine soldiers, the US troops are not tainted with a history of failures against the Abu Sayyaf.

Philippine soldiers failed to prevent the Abu Sayyaf from escaping with a group of US and Filipino hostages from a hospital compound in Lamitan town in June, 2001.

After months of setbacks, Filipino troops on June 7 this year managed to recover the last of the hostages, American missionary Gracia Burnham but her fellow captives, husband Martin and Filipina nurse Ediborah Yap, were killed in the rescue operation.

When Yap was buried in Lamitan last week, it was American soldiers -- not Filipinos, who acted as her pallbearers.

Reported by: Sol Jose Vanzi

© Copyright, 2002 by PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE