Australia denies army chief’s visit to Mindanao

SYDNEY — Australia’s defense ministry denied yesterday its army chief was on a secret visit to the southern Philippines this week to be briefed on a hunt for two suspects in the 2002 Bali bombings that left 200 people dead.

Contradicting Filipino military officials, Canberra’s Defense Department said Lt. Gen. Peter Leahy’s trip to the Philippines was instead part of scheduled exchange of visits.

"The chief of the army is visiting the Philippines on a counterpart visit with the Philippine Army, that is all," a defense department spokesman told AFP, declining however to offer any details of Leahy’s movements.

In Manila, the Australian embassy said "Leahy has been briefed on a number of issues of regional interest, including the Philippine military’s campaign against extremist groups in the southern Philippines."

The Aussie general has presented medals "to a number of personnel, in recognition of the closeness and respect Australia holds for the Armed Forces of the Philippines and their assistance... during a critical period," the embassy statement said.

Philippine military officials earlier said Leahy flew Thursday to Zamboanga on the southern island of Mindanao where he was updated on the hunt for two fugitive members of the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) extremist group.

The pair, Umar Patek and Dulmatin, are wanted for their involvement in the 2002 bombings on the popular Indonesian resort island of Bali in which 88 Australians were among the dead.

According to the Philippines military, Leahy was told that Filipino troops, backed up by US intelligence, had the militants surrounded in dense jungle on the nearby island of Jolo but are meeting strong resistance.

Regional military chief Maj. Gen. Eugenio Cedo told Leahy that the JI militants were being sheltered by Abu Sayyaf, a local Muslim extremist group, in the jungle, the Philippine military said.

"Australia is concerned about the hunt for the two JI terrorists," said military spokesman Maj. Eugene Batara, adding that the country had offered to train Philippine special forces and help establish "riverine" units which were used during the Vietnam War to patrol waterways. — AFP