Three killed as Estrada suspends talks with rebels
Three killed as Estrada suspends talks with rebels
ZAMBOANGA, Philippines (AFP): Three Muslim rebels were killed in fresh clashes with soldiers in the southern Philippines hours before President Joseph Estrada suspended talks after police accused them of masterminding a wave of deadly bombings in Manila, officials said on Sunday.
The military's southern command said Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) forces attacked Saturday a group of government militias in the town of Tubod in southern Lanao del Sur province.
Soldiers were immediately sent to reinforce the militias, triggering an hour-long gunbattle that left at least three MILF rebels killed, the military said.
Troops also bombarded with mortars an area controlled by the MILF in the town of Carmen in North Cotabato after the guerrillas harassed security forces. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
The fresh hostilities came just hours before President Estrada said he would suspend talks with the MILF after police tagged the group as responsible for a wave of bomb attacks in Manila on Dec. 30 that killed 22 people and wounded nearly 100 others.
"We cannot tolerate this. What they have done is a major blow not only in the lives of people but also in the livelihood of people, in terms of foreign investment, tourists and our economy," Estrada said on Saturday.
Peace negotiations with the MILF last year collapsed after Manila launched a massive military offensive that led to the fall of the rebel group's main base in the south.
Estrada however has recently been making peace overtures with the MILF with officials earlier planning a resumption of negotiations this year.
National police chief Panfilo Lacson last Friday recommended filing of multiple murder charges against MILF chairman Hashim Salamat, vice chairmen Mohammad Murad and Ghadzali Jaafar and four other MILF members for the bombings.
Lacson said there was clear evidence linking Afghan-trained MILF rebels to the bombings, adding that police planned to "neutralize the leadership" of the group.
Earlier on Sunday, the military said it is ready to help police arrest leaders of the 13,000-strong MILF if asked to help.
"The military is supportive of the Philippine National Police and if there is a warrant of arrest for MILF leaders, troops could be used as backup to policemen in serving the warrant," he said.
He said however that troops will not hesitate to seize any wanted MILF leader in the event an encounter takes place.
The MILF has been waging a 22-year rebellion for the establishment of an independent Islamic state in the main southern island of Mindanao, where Muslims are a large minority.
MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu on Sunday again rejected claims his group had anything to do with the bombings and accused police of tagging them as a "convenient excuse" for their alleged inability to solve the case.
Kabalu said ongoing rebel offensives were confined to Mindanao and targeted only troops, not civilians. He said it was "alright" for the government to suspend the talks, because "we are not the ones who are seeking its resumption."
MILF leaders are not covered by Philippine laws because they do not recognize the constitution, he said, and any attempts to arrest them could lead to further bloodshed.
"We are ready to die for our cause. We are ready for any eventuality," Kabalu told AFP in a phone interview from his Mindanao base.