Rebels surrender as RP military presses assault
Rebels surrender as RP military presses assault
ZAMBOANGA, Philippines (Agencies): Fifteen more Muslim rebels surrendered Tuesday on a southern island where the military is continuing a 25-day assault to rescue five hostages, including three Malaysians and an American, a military official said.
The 15 Abu Sayyaf guerrillas surrendered in a remote area of Talipao town on Jolo island under pressure from the assault, army Col. Ernesto de Guzman said.
Military officials said they expect many more rebels will turn themselves in because of fatigue and a lack of food and ammunition.
Five hungry and tired rebels surrendered Sunday.
Military spokesman Brig. Gen. Generoso Senga said a top rebel commander, Ghalib "Robot" Andang, has also sent surrender feelers to a general involved in the assault.
The five rebels who surrendered Sunday told the military where they had been hiding on Jolo and provided other information that could help troops track down the remaining guerrillas, Senga said.
"They were really tired and had no food to eat," Senga said in a radio interview.
Military officials said some guerrillas have hidden their weapons and merged with villagers to escape the assault.
Government troops clashed three times Monday with small groups of rebels in Talipao, a rebel stronghold, but there were no reports of casualties, the military said.
The 20 rebels who have surrendered so far were all members of an Abu Sayyaf faction led by Andang and Mujib Susukan. The two led the abduction of 21 tourists and workers from a Malaysian diving resort in April. The rebels later abducted dozens more hostages.
Most of the hostages have been released after the payment of more than $15 million in ransom by Libya and Malaysia, negotiators say. The rebels are still holding five hostages - three Malaysians, an American and a Filipino.
Malaysian Ambassador Manzoor Hussein Arshad appealed to the rebels to release the hostages without conditions. He said Malaysia fully supports Philippine government efforts to resolve the kidnappings.
Governor Abdusakur Tan said the offensive has forced about 82,000 people to flee their homes in the hills and mountains of Jolo, where air force planes and government troops are bombarding the rebels with rockets, artillery and gunfire.
Military officials say 129 guerrillas have been killed and 53 others have been captured in 57 clashes during the assault, which is likely to take at least two more weeks.
Five soldiers and three militiamen have been killed and 16 other soldiers injured in the assault in Jolo, about 940 kilometers south of Manila.
The rebels say they are fighting for a separate Islamic state in the southern Philippines, but the government regards them as bandits.
Meanwhile, in another development, President Joseph Estrada on Tuesday ordered the withdrawal of criminal charges against three top leaders of the country's largest Moslem separatist group in a bid to convince the rebels to resume stalled peace talks.
National Security Adviser Alexander Aguirre said the Justice Department has been directed to initiate "legal moves" to drop the charges against Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) chairman Hashim Salamat, vice-chairman Murad Ebrahim and spokesman Ed Cabalu.
Salamat, Murad and Cabalu have been charged with multiple murder and multiple attempted murder for a series of bombings in the capital and in the southern region of Mindanao since April.
"The move to withdraw the criminal charges against the three top leaders is being done to pave the way for the resumption of the peace talks," Aguirre said in a statement.
The government has been trying to get the MILF back to the negotiating table since after a three-month military campaign that resulted in the capture of the rebel group's camps and main headquarters in the southern region of Mindanao.
Estrada earlier offered cash rewards for the arrest of Salamat, Murad and Cabalu, but later withdrew it after government negotiators warned the bounty would jeopardize backdoor talks.