Marwan told brother about MILF, US spy planes

MANILA, Philippines — Malaysian terror suspect Zulkifli bin Hir, alias Marwan, killed by police Special Action Force (SAF) commandos in January, reported of the United States' spy planes and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

While residing in the Philippines, Marwan exchanged emails with his brother, Rahmat Abdhir, who was based in the US. The email correspondence began on an unknown date and continued through at least August 2007.

The emails are described and quoted in documents from the Northern California court indicting Marwan, tagged as a leader of the Jemaah Islamiyah terror network, and Rahmat for "conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists."

Marwan regularly informed his brother, who was based in California, on battles between Philippine government forces and "individuals or groups who were actively protecting" him.

These included, "but not limited to elements of the MILF." The Malaysian bomb-maker also reported on the "involvement of the United States in these conflicts through the use of Orion spy planes and Predator drones," the document stated.

"Rahmat Abdhir and Zulkifli Abdhir kept one another informed about the situation in the Philippines by forwarding each other news stories and Internet links about the ongoing conflict in Mindanao, and elsewhere, and about the fact that Zulkifli Abdhir was a wanted fugitive in the Philippines," it added.

Rahmat would also be updated on Marwan's location and companions.

In a supposed email to Rahmat on June 29, 2006, Marwan expressed sadness over the death of a certain MILF guerilla who "hosted him" the year before.

[He] died a martyr. There has been a battle at his location for six days, and it is still not over yet. The guy was young—I think he was about 45. His eldest child is 18 years old. His son-in-law is a friend of mine.

Marwan also replied to his brother, who inquired about the war and his whereabouts on June 30, 2006.

It is a war against the government troops. It was on the news last night; twenty government troops died, as well as five MILF soldiers. A friend of mine told me that two were martyred and twenty government troops died. From here, the location is about six or seven hours away on foot. The fighting is still going on until now. I can hear it from my location. It started early morning from six o'clock until evening. I think it has been going on for eight days now. Earlier today, a helicopter was flying back and forth over in that area. You can hear it from here.

Marwan's emails coincided with the conflict which started on June 28, 2006 between the MILF and armed civilian volunteers under Maguindanao's Ampatuan clan supported by the Philippine Army. The fighting ended with a cease-fire deal the following month.

The messages were usually written in Malay, and the authors refrained from using their real names, referring instead to Marwan as "Hulagu," "Holagu" or "Lagu."

Marwan would ask his brother to send him items, firearms, money and even two-way radios by using code. "Iron," for example, would refer to firearms, and "prizes" and "presents" would mean bombs or improvised explosive devices.

In August 2006, Marwan described to Rahmat an incident when a squad of SAF commandos closed in on his location in an attempt to "capture him alive."  Marwan wrote in the third person, describing the SAF operation guided by "government assets" or "spies."

His house was broken into and the door got torn off. His wife and child were able to get out before the exchange of fire. Three of Lagu's neighbors with Armalite rifles were able to assist until the attacking commandos withdrew.

He also believed the SAF policemen coordinated with insiders, who were his neighbors, "because the commandos knew exactly where he lived, the route to his house, and the withdrawal routes."

BIFF coddling Marwan?

The negotiations between the government and the MILF in years that followed irked some its militant members, who broke away to form the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) in 2008.

In October 2012, the government crafted a framework agreement with the MILF while Marwan remained in the US and Philippine authorities' "most wanted" lists of global terrorists.

The Jan. 25, 2015 SAF operation that neutralized Marwan turned into an hours-long gunfight with MILF and BIFF rebels, claiming the lives of 44 commandos. The incident prompted questions on the MILF's commitment to the peace process.

In a Senate inquiry into the clash last week, an MILF representative denied Marwan was in cahoots with the group nor was he being coddled by its members.

"Hindi po totoo yung sinasabi niyo po na kinukupkop po namin si Marwan," said Rasif Ladiasan, chair of the MILF coordinating committee on the cessation of hostilities. "Hindi po namin alam na nando'n si Marwan."

Ladiasan also pointed out that Marwan was killed in an area controlled by the BIFF, not the MILF.