RP to end search for Abu Sayyaf chief

RP to end search for Abu Sayyaf chief

PHILIPPINES: The Philippine military will soon end its three-
month-long hunt for the country's most wanted Moro militant in
part of the southern island of Mindanao, a senior defense
official said on Thursday.

The failure to capture Khaddafy Janjalani, the leader of the
al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf Group, appears to be a setback for the
United States, which has poured millions of dollars into training
and equipping Philippine troops to fight militants.

The defense official, who asked not to be identified, told
Reuters that Philippine troops would give up their search in
Maguindanao province by the end of September following complaints
from local Muslim communities.

"We're not giving up our efforts to hunt down Janjalani," the
defense official told Reuters.

"But there is a more urgent need to avoid the undue and
prolonged displacement of local communities in affected areas."
-- Reuters