October 12, 2000, Manila Bulletin, 10 more Abu Sayyaf men surrendered to troops,

October 12, 2000, Manila Bulletin, 10 more Abu Sayyaf men surrendered to troops,

JOLO, Sulu (AFP) - Ten members of the Abu Sayyaf surrendered yesterday as government troops stepped up their bid to rescue five hostages from the southern Philippines, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief General Angelo T. Reyes said.

Reyes, who went to Jolo to check on ground troops involved in the four-week assault, said two Abu Sayyaf rebels had surrendered on Wednesday and four others yielded to police early yesterday morning.

Four other Abu Sayyaf gunmen surrendered on Thursday afternoon, when troops also confiscated a military-style jeep believed to be owned by Abu Sayyaf leader Galib Andang, reports said.

The military said that Abu Sayyaf leaders Andang and Mujib Susukan were being deserted by their men, who were low on ammunition and famished from weeks of hiding.

Major General Narciso Abaya, commander of the 5,000-strong Task Force Trident undertaking the rescue effort, said information from the surrendered rebels could be vital in the safe rescue of the hostages.

"All information gave us a substantial lead on their exact location," Abaya said. "We have a strict order to get them wherever they are and to recover the hostages alive. We are calling on them to surrender because there is no way out for them."

22 in all

MANILA (DPA) - Twenty-two Moslem extremists holding five hostages in the southern Philippines have surrendered to the government amid continued ground and air assaults against their jungle lairs, the military said Thursday.

A military report reaching the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) headquarters in Camp Aguinaldo said the Abu Sayyaf rebels, headed by a certain Par Saudi, surrendered on Wednesday to army soldiers conducting pursuit operations on Jolo island, Sulu province, 1,000 kilometers south of Manila.

The surrender of Saudi's group brought to 42 the number of Abu Sayyaf rebels who have given themselves up since the military began its blitz on Sept. 16.