Philippine troops kill militant commander

Abdullah Ajijul was killed on Wednesday during a raid on his hide-out in southern Basilan province's Al Barka township, in an area where the militants have evaded US-backed military operations for years, said Major General Benjamin Dolorfino, commander of the military's Western Mindanao Command.

Dolorfino described Ajijul as an "urban terrorist leader" behind bomb attacks and ransom kidnappings in southern Zamboanga City. He carried a 3.3 million peso (Dh257,124.01) reward on his head, Dolorfino said.

Significant gain

The military "scored a significant gain in its anti-terrorism campaign," he said.

Troops recovered from the hide-out an assault rifle with a scope, but Dolorfino declined to give other details of the raid because it was an intelligence-driven operation.

The military has been hunting down a group of Abu Sayyaf militants accused of beheading a schoolteacher early this month in Basilan when his family could not raise the money for his ransom.

It was one of the latest killings blamed on the Abu Sayyaf, who are notorious for terrorist attacks and kidnappings.

The Abu Sayyaf is suspected of receiving funds from Al Qaida. It is believed to have about 400 fighters on the island province of Basilan, close to Zamboanga and farther south on Jolo Island. The group has also been sheltering militants from the larger Southeast Asian terrorist group Jemaah Islamiyah, the military says.

Despite years of US military training and assistance, Filipino troops have struggled to contain the militants, who have recently intensified attacks on Jolo, blowing up bridges, firing mortar rounds and setting off roadside bombs.

A September 29 land mine explosion under a military convoy carrying American troops killed two US Army Special Forces soldiers — the first US military deaths in the southern Philippines in seven years.