Armed Forces chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon Jr. said he believes the MNLF remains committed to the peace agreement it signed with the government in 1996.
"In other words Habier Malik belongs to a breakaway group of the mainstream MNLF. It remains to be like that," Esperon said.
"We are not going after the MNLF, we are going after Malik," he said, apparently referring to the capture Thursday of an MNLF camp after heavy shelling from 105mm howitzers.
Esperon said the camp that was overrun was under the MNLF Sulu zone commander Khaid Ajibun, whose group reportedly left the area deliberately to clear the way for a military operation to kill or capture Abu Sayyaf leaders Albader Parad, Dr. Abu Pula, and Radulan Sahiron. Troops found the camp in Barangay Marang deserted.
"The Abu Sayyaf militants might have slipped. But the hunt continued against the group who might have only been hiding in the dense forest," Brig. Gen. Ruperto Pabustan, commander of the Special Forces under the Joint Special Operations Group (JSOG), said. Esperon said Ajibun is free to return to the camp.
He said a mechanism should be put in place to keep Abu Sayyaf terrorists from seeking refuge at MNLF camps.
"This time we could put more control because Marang has been reported to be a favorite sanctuary of Abu Sayyaf leaders not necessarily with the knowledge of the MNLF Misuari rebels," Esperon said.
Violence in Sulu erupted early this month when Malik’s group launched mortar attacks on civilian targets in the province. The military counterattacked but failed to capture or kill Malik.
Meanwhile, officials of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) said the hostilities in Sulu may set back the implementation of foreign-funded projects in Sulu.
Mustapha Sambulawan, manager of the ARMM Social Fund Project (ASFP), said the fighting government troops and Malik’s followers destroyed a newly built health center in Panamao.
The ASFP, bankrolled by Malacañang, the World Bank and the Japan Bank for International Cooperation, has various projects in remote towns in Sulu, mostly for improving the farming and fishing productivity of Tausug residents.
The WB rated ASFP’s projects in Sulu as "satisfactory," according to ARMM officials.
ARMM covers Marawi City, Shariff Kabunsuan, Maguindanao and Lanao del Sur, and the island provinces of Basilan, Sulu and Tawi- Tawi.
"We are appealing to the MNLF forces in Sulu and the military to peacefully discuss possible solutions to the security problems now gripping the province," Sambulawan said.
Sambulawan said ARMM Gov. Zaldy Ampatuan, chairman of the regional peace and order council, together with concerned agencies, has been urging the military and rebel groups to stay away from areas where there are vital ASFP projects such as hospitals and schools.
One of the high-impact projects of ASFP is the seaport terminal building in Jolo.
"Any delay in the implementation of ASFP projects in the affected towns means delay in the socio-economic advancement of the communities that would benefit from our projects," Sambulawan said.
"There are no clear solutions yet to the security problems now hounding the province. As long as there is fighting there, evacuees will never return to their communities," Bai Rakma Imam, ARMM’s social welfare secretary, said.