DND warns Filipinos to keep guard up
MANILA, Philippines – The Department of National Defense (DND) hailed the killing of Al-Queda leader Osama bin laden, but warned Filipinos to keep their guards up in the face of continued operations by terrorist groups such as the Abu Sayyaf, which has links to the Al-Queda affiliated Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) .
“While we celebrate with the rest of the freedom loving world on this occasion, we caution our citizenry that this is not the time to put our guard down, but a time for more vigilance and alertness in seeing to it that the spectre of terrorism does not creep back into our national territory,” the DND said in a press statement.
United States President Barack Obama announced the death bin Laden, the alleged mastermind behind the September 11, 2001 attack in the US, who was killed in a surgical strike by US Navy Seals in Pakistan Sunday.
The DND hailed the killing of bin Laden, describing this as a “giant step” in the war against global terrorism, and will lead to the demise of international terror group Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), which operates out of Mindanao in Southern Philippines.
“This development is a major victory for all advocates of democracy and freedom and a triumph for peace loving citizens all over the world. It is a giant step in the campaign against global terrorism,” the DND statement said.
“The DND is optimistic that Bin Laden’s death would lead to the eventual severance of the links of the local terrorist group with Jemaah Islamiyah which served as link to Bin Laden’s al Quaeda. The demise of the principal patron of terrorism and the isolation of these terrorists will subsequently bring about their decimation and total elimination,” the DND statement said.
The DND promised that the Armed Forces of the Philippines will continue to relentlessly pursue terrorist groups like the Abu Sayyaf wherever they may be.
