THE PHILIPPINES: At least five members of the Muslim Abu Sayyaf extremist group were killed yesterday in a gun battle on the south Philippine island of Basilan, the latest target in the war against terrorism.
The shooting came a day after the Philippines and the US opened a training exercise in the Philippines aimed at wiping out Abu Sayyaf which has alleged connections to al-Qaeda.
Meanwhile, the Philippine military announced it was stepping up security to protect Americans, following news of hostilities against US citizens, which have coincided, with the launch of the Philippine-US military exercise known as "Balikatan" (shoulder-to-shoulder).
The latest incident involved an attack on a transport plane carrying US troops. The Philippine army chief, Maj Gen Jaime de Los Santos, said security had been doubled to avoid any repeat incidents.
The National Security Adviser, Mr Roilo Golez, said the US and Philippine military were now jointly investigating the shooting of the plane. "It was flying over an area with no known insurgency activity. It is an area very close to the tip of Luzon [northern Philippine island]," he said . "It is improbable that this was caused by insurgent activities . . . the Americans expressed that there is no cause for alarm, so they are simply investigating this."
In Manila, meanwhile, two lawyers asked the Supreme Court to stop the joint military exercise, arguing that a bilateral agreement contains no provision allowing US troops to be deployed "in a war zone area" like Basilan.
Philippine soldiers engaged about 20 guerrillas in a 15-minute gunfight around Maluso town on Basilan Island near Zamboanga, Southern Command chief Lieut Gen Roy Cimatu said.
Troops recovered the body of one guerrilla, five assault rifles, personal belongings and ammunition in the village of Las Poler. The remaining guerrillas were being pursued by the marines, who suffered no injuries.
The guerrillas have eluded about 7,000 soldiers deployed to Basilan since beginning a kidnapping spree in May. They still hold two Christian missionaries Mr Martin and Ms Gracia Burnham of Wichita, Kansas, and a nurse, Ms Deborah Yap of Basilan.
