MILF slams Singapore terror expert for trying to ‘derail peace process’

DAVAO CITY — The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) said there is "nothing new" in the claim of a Singaporean terrorist expert that the Indonesia-based Jemaah Islamiyah terrorist group is operating in Mindanao.

"Those were old issues rehashed by one Indian-Singaporean who claims to be an expert on terrorism, in an effort to derail the ongoing peace process," said MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu.

"He is just messing up the peace negotiation with his claims about JIs (Jemaah Islamiyah) in Mindanao," he said.

Kabalu said Dr. Raham Gunaratna, head of the Singapore-based International Center for Political Violence and Terrorism Research Center, is trying to derail the peace process under which the government and the MILF are expected to reach a peace agreement by year’s end.

"Gunaratna is all pure analysis and pure speculations," he said. "He has not even been to Mindanao, and so he does not know anything about peaceful co-existence among us here and our efforts to bring about peace in the conflict-affected areas."

"And the only thing that was new there was the alleged plan about the fresh attacks by over 100 militant rebels," he added. — Edith Regalado