2 Sayyaf leaders sighted

ZAMBOANGA CITY — Abu Sayyaf leaders Ghalib Andang alias Commander Robot and Mujib Susukan have been sighted in the jungles of the Sulu towns of Talipao and Patikul by military troops pursuing the extremist guerrillas, intelligence reports said.

Andang and Susukan, the reports said, have been on the run in two groups since the military launched an all-out offensive against the rebel-bandits last Sept. 16.

Military sources said Andang, with about 100 hardcore followers, was spotted in the jungle of Talipao, while Susukan’s group was sighted in Patikul.

It was not clear though which group was holding the two remaining hostages — American Jeffrey Schilling and Filipino dive master Roland Ullah.

Col. Hilario Atendido, spokesman of the Armed Forces’ Southern Command, said more than 4,000 soldiers are still tracking down the groups of Andang, Susukan and other Abu Sayyaf leaders in the hinterlands of Sulu.

The Task Force Katapat II of the Department of the Interior and Local Government itself has joined in the hunt for the Abu Sayyaf leaders.

Chief Superintendent Romeo Maganto, task force head, said he has ordered the Task Group Mindanao to help track down Abu Sayyaf leaders. Andang, he said, almost fell into the hands of his men recently. — With Marvin Sy