AFP always alert for terror–Oban

MANILA, Philippines—Despite the death of international terrorist leader Osama bin Laden, the Philippine military is not taking any chances.

Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff Gen. Eduardo Oban Jr. said they were assuming that there would be retaliatory attacks by local Islamic extremists like the Abu Sayyaf in retaliation for the killing of their former benefactor.

But Oban said they had no information about any specific threat based on the latest intelligence.

“It’s better to consider that. It’s prudent to consider all possibilities. That’s why we are always prepared for that. That’s why we’re hitting right at the heart of the (Abu Sayyaf) organization in Jolo and Basilan,” Oban said.

Oban said the AFP did not need to go on a nationwide red alert after US troops killed in Pakistan the mastermind of the 9/11 attacks because the troops had not slackened in their operations against extremist rebels responsible for kidnapping for ransom, bombings and extortion incidents.

“It has to be a continuous effort until we have reached the objectives of bayanihan in neutralizing the Abu Sayyaf, the Jemaah Islamiyah and other (extremist) groups,” Oban said.

The new internal peace and security plan “Bayanihan” under the Aquino administration has laid down tailor-fit strategies for every security threat group.

No-negotiation policy

For the Abu Sayyaf and other extremist groups, the military backs the government’s no-negotiation policy.

Under the Bayanihan, “defeating the terrorist groups shall be done by initially isolating them… from their foreign support and influence, other threat groups and mass base support… so that military force could be applied on them with precision and reduced collateral damage.”

“When Bin Laden was killed, there was no need for a heightened alert because we were on heightened alert from the first day (of Bayanihan). The latest operational gains we had in Jolo and Basilan would attest to that,” Oban said.

The Eastern Mindanao Command went on red alert on Tuesday, a day after the US announced Bin Laden’s death, in anticipation of sympathy attacks from “fanatics” of Bin Laden.

Easmincom covers Region X (northern Mindanao), Region XI (Davao region), Region XII (Soccsksargen) and Region XIII (Caraga region) and the provinces of Maguindanao and Lanao Del Sur.

Step up operations

The Western Mindanao Command which covers the Zamboanga peninsula and the Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi provinces also stepped up its operations and intelligence efforts but played down the possibility of sympathy attacks.

The provinces of Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi, which are traditional lairs of the Abu Sayyaf, are under the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

National Security Adviser Cesar Garcia said Wednesday the threat level was high in Regions IX, XI and XII and the ARMM in the wake of Bin Laden’s death.

Oban said the arrest of 39-year-old Abu Sayyaf member Imam Arabani Jakiran who was working as a security guard at a high-end condominium in Global City, Taguig, showed that the security forces were continuously tracking down Abu Sayyaf members wanted for criminal activities.

“They normally come to the urban areas to elude arrest,” he said.