Al-Ghozi believed hiding in southern RP

Al-Ghozi believed hiding in southern RP

Agence France-Presse, Zamboanga, Philippines

Escaped Indonesian terrorist Fathur Rohman Al-Ghozi is hiding in
the Lanao region of the southern Philippines where police killed
one of his cellmates who had broken out of prison with him, the
military said on Friday.

Jamaah Islamiyah (JI) bomb-maker Al-Ghozi was believed hiding
in or around Lanao del Norte province where his Filipino Muslim
guerrilla cellmate and fellow fugitive Abdulmukim Edris was shot
dead on Thursday, regional military chief Lt. Gen. Roy Kyamko
said.

"There is a strong indication that Al-Ghozi is there," Kyamko
said. "The military is going to undertake operations there
against companions of Edris, whoever they are."

Edris, a member of the Abu Sayyaf kidnapping gang, was
arrested on Thursday along with Mahmud Ismael, an alleged member
of the Muslim separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)
rebel group near the town of Sultan Naga Dimaporo following a
tip-off from some civilians in the area, Kyamko said.

The two agreed to lead soldiers to the hideout of al-Ghozi,
but were shot dead when they tried to grab their captors'
weapons, the military said.

The unnamed informants would receive a reward for leading
authorities to Edris, Kyamko said.

President Gloria Arroyo ordered the military to reveal all
details on the shooting of Edris to allay suspicions that he was
killed by the military to keep him silent.

Arroyo told the military "to inform the public of the
circumstances in the slaying of Edris, to obviate any report
questioning the rules of engagement."

But she also said she was cheered by the signs of progress in
the manhunt,

"The long hand of justice will catch up with these characters,
one way or another," she said.

The MILF is preparing to reopen peace talks with the
government and has repeatedly denied accusations that it is has
links to both the Abu Sayyaf and the JI regional Islamic
extremist network.

MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu reiterated that his group was not
hiding Al-Ghozi and said, "We have a standing order to all our
commanders on the ground, to arrest Al-Ghozi and company at first
sight."

He could not confirm if Edris had been killed in the company
of a MILF member, but warned that this was possibly a "scripted"
incident, arranged by the military to blacken the MILF's
reputation.