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