Choppers, troops assault Abu isle

MANILA, Philippines—Military aircraft fired rockets and dropped assault troops Friday on an island where an Abu Sayyaf commander wanted by Washington has been sighted with his men, officials said.

Military officials launched the assault at dawn after detecting the presence of Khair Mundos, his deputy Puruji Indama and about 15 Abu Sayyaf fighters in a mangrove area on Sacol island near Zamboanga City, regional military spokesperson Lt. Col. Randolph Cabangbang said.

Washington has blacklisted the Abu Sayyaf as a terrorist group and blamed it for deadly attacks on American troops and civilians in the southern Philippines.

Cabangbang said it was not immediately clear if Mundos or his men were killed or captured, adding the assault was continuing about nine hours after it started at dawn in an area that was far from communities.

Zamboanga City Mayor Celso Lobregat said the attack was so secretive he and other officials were not notified, prompting him to call Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin to check what was going on.

The State Department announced a $500,000 reward in 2009 for the killing or capture of Mundos, who US authorities said has worked as a financier of the Abu Sayyaf. The Basilan-based Mundos has led one of four key Abu Sayyaf factions in the south.

Indama has been linked by the military to beheadings and kidnappings for ransom in Zamboanga and Basilan.