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Talks for their extension start in December

DATU ODIN SINSUAT, Shariff Kabunsuan – The remaining Malaysian peacekeepers, who had been ensuring the success of the ceasefire between government troops and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, left Mindanao on Sunday, as talks for the extension of the International Monitoring Team’s tour of duty will start in December yet.

The 12 remaining Malaysians, led by First Admiral Dato Pahlawan Amzah Bin Sulaiman, flew back to Kuala Lumpur from the Awang airport here aboard a Malaysian Air Force C-130 transport plane.

"It’s nice to go home but leaving behind friends is hard. We hope that we can come back again in a different capacity," Sulaiman said before leaving.

"I hope that the Philippine government and the MILF can resume the peace talks soon," Sulaiman said.

Mohagher Iqbal, MILF chief negotiator, said talks between the Philippine government and the MILF would be held in December in connection with the peacekeeping issue.

The Malaysians have made up the bulk of the small international monitoring team which has overseen a 2003 ceasefire between the Philippine government and the separatist MILF.

Members from Brunei, Libya and Japan will continue with their work, although with barely two dozen covering the south, it is unlikely they will be effective, officials have said.

Malaysia has said it was pulling out its troops due to a lack of progress in the peace talks, which have been suspended since President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ordered a massive assault on the rebels in August.

A fresh breakdown in talks came after MILF fighters staged a series of coordinated, deadly attacks across several towns and provinces on Mindanao island that left hundreds of thousands displaced and dozens dead.

The attacks came shortly after the Supreme Court issued an injunction against a proposed deal that would have given the rebels control over 700 towns and territories across Mindanao. It subsequently ruled the deal was unconstitutional.

The Brussels-based International Crisis Group (ICG), which tracks conflicts worldwide, has said that while the fighting will not lead to an all-out war covering the whole of Mindanao, it does not see both sides returning to the table for talks anytime soon.

• Blast near cathedral kills 5, wounds 35