PNP asked to name JI trainers in Mindanao

Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr. challenged the Philippine National Police (PNP) yesterday to name the Filipino trainers of Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) operatives in Mindanao, rather than making sweeping statements that hurt Muslims.

"Police officials should identify who trained the Jemaah Islamiyah agents in Muslim Mindanao instead of resorting to ‘agit-prop’ (agitation-propaganda) to connect the Bali bombings to Philippine trainers," Pimentel said, referring to last Saturday’s terror attack on the island resort in Indonesia that killed 26 people.

Pimentel, a native of Cagayan de Oro City in Mindanao, said it was "hard to imagine why suicide bombers should train here when they can easily do so in their wilder terrain of Indonesia."

It was Indonesian security authorities who said the two suspected masterminds of the Bali bombings received terrorist training in Mindanao.

National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales earlier revealed that two operatives of the JI terror network may have been hiding in Metro Manila to launch possible attacks.

In view of the recent Bali attacks perpetrated days before the third anniversary of the previous bombings on the island resort that killed over 200 people, mostly Australian tourists, Sen. Ralph Recto wants Gonzales to be summoned to a "closed-door meeting" at the Senate with military and police officials in tow to brief senators on the threats.

"With the Bali bombing, we should be bothered with the Islamic jihad, not the political jihad we have been waging against each other," Recto said.

The Senate cited Gonzales for contempt and ordered him detained last Sept. 21 after he refused to reveal who footed the bill for the controversial contract with US lobbying firm Venable LLP.

Recto explained that an appearance by Gonzales to answer questions on the terror threat will not alter the nature of the contempt citation against him.

The lawmaker noted the confirmation from Western and Indonesian intelligence experts that many of JI’s top leaders frequented the Philippines "to buy arms and bomb materials, recruit members, and train both foreign and local affiliates in bomb-making."

"Tell me, with this information, are we going to sit idly and wait for the bomb to explode here? We are requesting for a briefing because fighting terrorism is not the business of the military alone," Recto said. He pointed out the Senate would like to do its part in fighting terror through legislation and appropriation of funds.

Senate President Franklin Drilon said the Senate will work for the immediate passage of the anti-terrorism bill following the latest Bali attack. Drilon also vowed to work for the passage of the P1-trillion national budget for 2006.

Wire reports on Monday said that two Malaysians suspected of masterminding the latest suicide attacks in Bali underwent terrorism training in the Philippines.

The Bali suspects are notorious for their separate but complementary skills: one is called a bomb-making expert and the other a smooth talker adept at raising money and recruiting bombers.

Azahari bin Husin — known as the "Demolition Man" for his knowledge of explosives — and "Moneyman" Noordin Mohamed Top are believed to be key JI figures

Azahari is known to have received bomb-making training in Mindanao in 1999, and advanced training in Afghanistan in 2000. His wide expertise in bomb-making includes remote-controlled explosives.

Noordin is suspected of persuading militants into becoming suicide bombers, using skills he picked up during stints in the southern Philippines, Indonesian police said.

A senior Philippine military official said the local intelligence community is looking into the possibility that the Bali bombers trained in the Philippines and sourced their explosives here. "The Philippines is also considered one of the sources of raw explosive materials, like fertilizer, in the region," the official said.

Azahari and Noordin became Southeast Asia’s most wanted fugitives after allegedly masterminding the Oct. 12, 2002 Bali nightclub bombings that killed 202 people, and the Jakarta suicide attacks in 2003 and 2004, which left 23 more dead.

Although both Bali bombings were suicide attacks, a crucial difference is that last time the bombs were carried in a car and a backpack. This time, the three suicide bombers were wearing vests packed with explosives, metal shrapnel and ball bearings, officials said. — Christina Mendez