Military loses track of Sayyaf leader Janjalani

Weeks after publicizing the manhunt on the elusive Abu Sayyaf chieftain Khaddafy Janjalani, the military has admitted difficulties locating him and his armed group in the thickly forested mountains of Mindanao.

A top military commander admitted Friday his men have lost track of Janjalani and his men for a couple of days now.

Lt. Gen. Roy Kyamco, commander of the military’s Southern Command, told The STAR the manhunt for Janjalani continues even as he admitted difficulty in tracking the elusive bandit leader. "It’s just like tailing a subject in the busy streets in Metro Manila na pagliko sa isang kanto biglang nawala na (only to lose him after entering a sidestreet)," Kyamco said.

Kyamco said the last time they tracked down Janjalani and his men was in the jungles of Mt. Kararaw in the Lanao provinces.

He said the terrain in the area is thick with vegetation and could only be reached by foot.

Reports said Janjalani and his group have linked out with suspected Jemaah Islamiyah militants training in the mountain complex.

Kyamco said that when government troops arrived in the area, the bandits reportedly left days earlier. "Even if we use helicopters we could not land in the area because of the thick forests. There is no road network to speak of either," Kyamco said.

Malacañang last month announced the imminent capture of Janjalani, who is now on the run with a P10-million reward on his head. Janjalani is also wanted by the US government for the murder and kidnapping of three American hostages and offered a $1 million bounty for his capture.

Security officials tagged Janjalani behind the aborted bombing attack in Metro Manila which resulted in the capture of six suspected bandits, one of them the alleged executioner of American hostage Guillermo Sobero in 2001 and the self-confessed suspect who claimed planting a bomb at the ill-fated SuperFerry 14 last March.