Janjalani in Basilan, not Sulu, says source

Abu Sayyaf chieftain Khadaffy Janjalani is already in Basilan, contrary to military claims that he is still holed up in Sulu.

In an early morning telephone call yesterday, a source said Janjalani and his men are now hiding out in a mountainous barangay near the coast in Sumisip town.

"They have just did their marketing in Maluso town," the source said. "Namili sila ng ilang kahon ng tuyo (dried fish)."

However, the military said Janjalani, along with Jemaah Islamiyah leaders Dulmatin, who goes by one name, and Umar Patek remains in hiding in Patikul, Sulu.

The source said the terrorists who returned with Janjalani to Basilan were formerly based in the province, and those who were left in Sulu are based there.

"Naghati sila," the source said. "At hanggang sa ngayon, nandoon pa sila sa Ereli, Sumisip."

The source said Janjalani was seen with Abu Sayyaf spokesman Abu Soliman, Isnilon Hapilon, Patek and Matin (Dulmatin).

"Ang naiwan na lang sa Sulu ay yong grupo nina Dr. Abu at Radullan Sahiron," the source said.

They appeared to have abandoned their plan to return to Punong Mujadjid as their former mountain complex is now being watched by the military, the source added.

However, the military said the information could be part of Abu Sayyaf propaganda.

Lt. Col. Bartolome Bacarro, AFP public information chief, insists that Janjalani and his band are still in Sulu.

Meanwhile, Abu Sayyaf commander Abu Sulaiman said yesterday at least five of his men have been killed in a month-long, US-backed military offensive in Sulu.

However, the terrorists dealt heavy casualties among government troops, he added.

The military said Abu Sulaiman’s claim was untrue, saying only three Marines and Army troops have died, and 31 others wounded during the offensives that started Aug. 1 in Jolo.

Bacarro said more than 10 Abu Sayyaf terrorists have been killed and troops captured at least one terrorist encampment with bomb-making paraphernalia.

"This is purely propaganda," Bacarro said. "The group is feeling the pressure of the offensives and wants to divert the focus of our troops."

Sulaiman, on the US government’s list of most-wanted terrorists, said the Abu Sayyaf is not intimidated by the US military helping Philippine troops tasked with wiping them out.

"Do you think you scare us with your high-tech weaponry and gadgets?" he asked. "We are only afraid of Allah and the day of judgment."

Sulaiman said the Abu Sayyaf had immediately enforced a counter-plan after government troops launched their assaults, with clashes spreading near the mountainous towns of Indanan and Patikul in Sulu.

The guerrillas killed as many as 50 soldiers, he added.

Marine Brig. Gen. Juancho Sabban said troops were continuing the assaults, stressing Americans were providing help but were not engaged in combat as Sulaiman claimed.

Evidence that troops gathered in the bomb-making area bolster long-held suspicions that the militants continue to plot attacks in the predominantly Muslim island province and elsewhere, he added.

The US government has offered as much as $5 million for the capture of Janjalani, Sulaiman and other Abu Sayyaf commanders.

It has also offered huge rewards for Patek and Dulmatin.

The Indonesians are suspected masterminds of the 2002 nightclub bombings in Bali, Indonesia, that killed 202 people and are believed to have fled to Mindanao shortly after the attacks. — With AP