U.S. to include Jemaah islamiyah on list

U.S. to include Jemaah islamiyah on list

PHILIPPINES: Washington plans to include a regional Muslim
militant group on its list of foreign terrorist organizations and
may seek the backing of the 10-member Association of Southeast
Asian Nations, a Philippine official said on Thursday.

Philippine Foreign Secretary Blas Ople will discuss the
inclusion of the Jemaah Islamiyah, a group that has been accused
of plotting attacks on U.S. and other Western targets in
Singapore, with Malaysian officials when he visits Kuala Lumpur
over the weekend, Foreign Undersecretary Lauro Baja said.

"I think the U.S. request will go one step further and ask for
ASEAN endorsement in accordance with the (memorandum of
understanding) between the ASEAN and the U.S. signed in Brunei,"
Baja said.

The United States and ASEAN countries signed early this month
an anti-terrorism cooperation agreement, one of the most
extensive security arrangements between Washington and its allies
in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks. --AP