Sahiron was also accused of plotting the kidnapping of Protestant missionaries Gracia and Martin Burnham and 18 others in Palawan in May 2001.
Also among those kidnapped was American Guillermo Sobero, who was beheaded in June 2001.
In 2002, Martin was killed during a military rescue operation, but Gracia survived and managed to write a book recounting her experience as captive.
About 300 members of the Abu Sayyaf operate in the country, the military said.
Hammami, also called the "rapping jihadi," was born in Alabama but is now thought to live in Somalia and is believed to be a senior leader of the Shebab rebels, who were placed on the US State Department's terror blacklist in 2008.
The group has "repeatedly threatened terrorist actions against America and American interests," the FBI said in a statement.
Also known as Abu Mansour al-Amriki, Hammami has been releasing rap songs in English on the Internet since 2009 as a recruitment tool, although music is forbidden in Al-Qaeda’s strict interpretation of Islam.
In the songs, Hammami says he hopes to be killed by a drone strike or in a cruise missile attack so he can achieve martyrdom.
He invites young people to join the jihad to "wipe Israel off the globe," and he encourages strikes against the US military in Afghanistan and
The FBI most wanted terrorist list was created in October 2001, shortly after the Sept. 11 attacks. The Seeking Information-Terrorism list was then created to publicize efforts to find suspects not yet charged with crimes.
Abu Sayyaf man captured
In Lamitan City, Basilan, intelligence and security forces captured an Abu Sayyaf member tagged in the Lamitan siege, according to officials.
The suspect, a certain Abu Benjamin, was charged with kidnapping and illegal detention, according to Capt. Alberto Caber, 1st Army Division spokesman.
Caber said Lamitan police and military intelligence agents cornered Benjamin in Barangay Oval.
"Alias Abu Benjamin was involved in the infamous Lamitan siege in June 2001 following the Dos Palmas kidnapping and the invasion of the bandits in the city and took hostage of medical staff of the Jose Maria Torres Memorial Hospital,” he said.
Benjamin was taken to military headquarters in Zamboanga City and placed under tactical debriefing before he would be handed over to the court for proper disposition.
Maj. Gen. Ricardo Rainier Cruz III, 1st Army Division chief, commended the troops that captured Benjamin. - Alexis Romero, Roel Pareño
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