MANILA, Philippines—The FBI confirmed on Thursday that a senior Malaysian militant with a $5-million reward on his head was killed in a January raid in Mamasapano, Maguindanao province, that also left 44 police commandos dead.
The confirmation provides some validation for the botched raid that plunged President Benigno Aquino III’s administration into crisis and jeopardized efforts to end a decades-long Muslim separatist insurgency.
“After a thorough review of forensic data and information obtained from our Philippine law enforcement partners, the FBI has assessed that terrorism subject, Zulkifli Abdhir, also known as ‘Marwan,’ is deceased and has been removed from the FBI’s list of Most Wanted Terrorists,” the US law enforcement agency said in a statement.
The raid claimed the lives of 44 members of the Philippine National Police–Special Action Force (SAF) who were attacked by Muslim gunmen after they raided Marwan’s hideout on Jan. 25.
The SAF commandos were sent to Maguindanao to get Marwan and Filipino bomb maker Abdul Basit Usman, who escaped.
The high death toll caused Aquino’s approval rating to tumble to its lowest level since he took office in 2010 and prompted questions about the nature of US-Philippines cooperation on military and antiterror operations.
“We have got our man and (the operation) was a success,” PNP spokesperson Chief Supt. Generoso Cerbo said in response to the FBI confirmation.
“We are glad we can finally erase all doubts about this death. We are now assured that the notorious terrorist has been neutralized,” said Armed Forces of the Philippines spokesperson Brig. Gen. Joselito Kakilala.
Marwan was a top militant in the Southeast Asian terror group Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) which is suspected of carrying out the 2002 Bali nightclub bombings which killed 202 people.