The general commanding army forces against Abu Sayyaf rebel group in southern Philippines was sacked amid growing criticism of his handling of the hostage situation in Basilan.

First Infantry Division Commander, Brig. Gen. Romeo Dominguez will be reassigned to head army forces in the central Philippines island of Samar, said division spokesman Maj. Alberto Gepillano. Dominguez was replaced yesterday by a veteran combat officer, Brig. Gen. Glicerio Sua.

The First Division is the main military group in charge of pursuing Abu Sayyaf rebels who are holding 20 people hostage, among them two U.S. citizens, said Gepillano. Prior to his assumption as regional army chief, Sua was deputy commander of the Southern Command, the largest military command outside Manila.

He also headed army forces that overran the main Abu Sayyaf camp last year in Basilan.
Last week, Sua replaced Dominguez as head of Task Force Comet which was charged with rescuing the Abu Sayyaf hostages. According to Gepillano, Sua's assumption as chief will boost troop morale.

"It has been welcomed by the soldiers," he said, adding that "changes in command are routine." Dominguez's sacking is the latest in a planned reshuffling of military command handling the 41-day hostage crisis.

On June 5, Col Jovenal Narcise was replaced as commander of the Basilan-based 103rd Infantry Brigade, which is under the First Infantry Division.

Narcise was criticised by Basilan locals when some 200 Abu Sayyaf guerrillas holding out at Lamitan's Jose Torres Memorial on June 4 were able to breach a security cordon set up by the army, allowing the rebels to escape with their hostages.

The army's reputation has been eroded by its inability to rescue the hostages, as several of the captives have been released piecemeal, allegedly after ransom was paid.

Only four of the original hostages taken from a resort in Palawan remain. They are American missionary couple Martin and Gracie Burnham, and Filipinos Angie Montealegre and Maria Fe Rosadeno. The other hostages with the group were taken during a series of raids in Basilan.

Despite the deployment of more than 5,000 soldiers in Basilan, the Abu Sayyaf has more than once escaped from the military and even killed four of their Filipino hostages and one American, Guillermo Sobero.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo maintained the government's no negotiation policy with the Abu Sayyaf and has given clear instructions to the military and police to crush the group.