After 5 months: Anti-terror troops to be granted leave

By Joel Guinto
INQUIRER.net
Last updated 12:03pm (Mla time) 01/09/2007

JOLO, Sulu -- After five months of operations against Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) extremists, troops deployed here will finally be allowed to go on leave, in time for an early Valentine’s Day date with their families.

Upon learning that soldiers here did not get the chance to visit their families for Christmas and New Year's Day, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo asked Armed Forces chief of staff General Hermogenes Esperon Jr. to authorize leaves for the troops.

"So, General [Eugenio] Cedo is now authorized by the President to authorize rotation passes so [the troops] can now enjoy Valentine’s…All the boys, they can look forward to a Valentines pass," Esperon told reporters.

Cedo is the commander of the Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom), which has jurisdiction over the Sulu area.

"This is the reward for our men who neutralized this very notorious Abu Sayyaf," Esperon said, referring to the neutralization of five Abu Sayyaf members and an Indonesian Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) militant by Navy and Marine troops off Tawi-Tawi province over the weekend.

Arroyo was at Camp Teodulfo Bautista here last Monday, where she congratulated troops for their "stunning victory" in Tawi-Tawi as she declared that the Islamic extremists in the south are "doomed to annihilation."

But Esperon said that, pursuant to military regulations, only five percent of the entire strength of a military unit are allowed to go on leave at any time.

Since August 1, some 7,500 troops, including elite Scout Rangers and Special Forces, have been scouring the jungles of Sulu for Abu Sayyaf chieftain Khadaffy Janjalani and JI bomb experts Dulmatin and Umar Patek, the latter two allegedly responsible for the 2002 Bali bombings that killed more than 200 people.

The Philippine Navy has also set up a sea blockade to prevent the terror suspects from escaping. The six militants killed in Tawi-Tawi had come from Jolo and were reportedly preparing for their leaders' escape to the nearby province.

Last December 27, troops recovered remains alleged to be Janjalani’s in Patikul town, where a fierce firefight between the bandits and Marines took place last September 4.

Tissue samples from the corpse have been submitted for DNA analysis to confirm if the remains belong to the Abu Sayyaf chieftain.

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