NGO warns of possible retaliation from Bin Laden’s PH followers

COTABATO CITY, Philippines—A Muslim non-governmental organization is calling for vigilance in the wake of the death of Osama bin Laden and warned of possible retaliatory attacks from extremists.

“We, of the Philippine Center for Islam and Democracy (PCID) advise the government as well as our community leaders not to let their guard down,” Amina Rasul, PCID president, said in an e-mailed statement on Tuesday.

Rasul said it was a known fact that bin Laden had supporters in some places in Mindanao.

“Although the Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiyah’s presence in the Philippines have been greatly decimated, we cannot rule out the possibility of violent retaliation by bin Laden’s Philippine-based supporters,” she said without elaborating.

Earlier, Lieutenant Colonel Randolph Cabangbang, spokesperson of the military’s Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom) based in Zamboanga City, said that aside from the Abu Sayyaf, there were other groups identified with the Jemaah Islamiyah, bin Laden’s arm in Southeast Asia.

He said that among them was the so-called “special operations group” (SOG) of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

The MILF has repeatedly denied the existence of the SOG and branded it as a concoction of the military.

Eid Kabalu, MILF civil-military affairs chief, said the military should stop derailing the peace process by not inventing things such as the SOG.

Rasul said the government and the MILF must ensure that the peace process will be insulated from any untoward event emanating from the death of bin Laden.

“Together, we should be focused on ensuring that our aspirations for a genuine and lasting peace and democracy will not be derailed by missteps that may be the result of the aftermath of bin Laden’s death,” she said.

Kabalu also urged the United States and other Western powers to re-examine their policies on the Middle East and the rest of the Muslim world because these were the main reason for the rise of terrorists such as bin Laden.

“For many Muslims, their sufferings were brought about by US and Western powers’ intervention in their affairs,” he said by phone. He cited the case of the Palestinian struggle.

Kabalu said bin Laden’s turning against the US was unexpected because he was in fact an ally against the the Soviet Union, which had occupied Afghanistan.

“The perceived discrimination against Muslims was the main reason he turned against the US,” he said.

Lieutenant General Raymundo Ferrer, chief of the Western Mindanao Command, said Bin Laden’s death would not automatically end terrorism.

“While it will negatively affect the morale of his terrorist network, we cannot discount that some of his followers will plan retaliatory actions. To this we have alerted our units of possible repercussions of Bin Laden’s death,” he said.

Superintendent Ronald dela Rosa, Davao del Sur police chief, agreed.

“Only their leader was killed so we anticipate that Islamic extremists would express their sympathy by staging attacks,” he said in an interview in Digos City.

In Kidapawan City, the police said the fight against terror got a boost from Monday’s turnover of a P3.8 million worth of explosive detection equipment.

Chief Superintendent Benjardi Mantege, Central Mindanao police director, said the equipment—an X-ray machine, laptops, generators, zebra eye mill scope, portable metal detectors, bombtech tool kit, bomb suit with EOD helmets and royal arm disruptor kit with power galvanometer—came from the anti-terrorism assistance program of the United States’ Department of Defense.

Superintendent Cornelio Salinas, North Cotabato police director, said four police personnel will undergo intensive training to enhance their capabilities in dealing with bomb-related incidents.

Apparently boosted by the success of the US military operation against bin Laden, the military announced a renewed campaign to capture Malaysian terror suspect Zulkifli Bin Hir.

Cabangbang said Zulkifli, also known as Marwan, has been reported to be in the Southern Philippines.

He said Zulkifli has cohorts in Mindanao, where he has been reportedly hiding since fleeing Malaysia in 2003.

Cabangbang admitted that tracking down Zulkifli would be difficult unless civilians cooperate.

“We are requesting the public’s help in finding known terrorist Zulkifli,” he said.

Cabangbang said they were optimistic that the United States’ $5 million offer for the capture of the US-trained engineer in charge of the Jemaah Islamiyah’s bomb-making training activities in Southeast Asia would help the campaign.

With reports from Edwin Fernandez, Julie Alipala and Williamor Magbanua, Inquirer Mindanao