11 more Abu Sayyaf men surrender in Basilan

CAMP GENERAL PENDATUN, Maguindanao — Eleven members of the now seemingly moribund Abu Sayyaf group in Basilan surrendered to the Army Tuesday.

The group is led by Abdullah Indanan, a henchman of Isnilon Hapilon, who perished during the May 23 to August 16, 2017 siege of Marawi City by the Abu Sayyaf and the Maute terror group.

Reports reaching the headquarters here of the Police Regional Office-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region, stated that Indanan and his 10 followers surrendered to Brig. Gen. Domingo Gobway, commander of the Army’s 101st Brigade, during a simple rite in Barangay Serongon in Hadji Muhammad Adjul town in Basilan.

The event was organized by officials of the Army’s 4th Special Forces Battalion, who, along with emissaries of Gov. Jim Salliman, and representatives from the Basilan Provincial Police Office,   convinced them to return to the fold of law via backdoor talks.

Gobway said leaders of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, which has a current peace process with Malacañang, also helped secure the surrender of Indanan’s group.

Indanan and his followers yielded four days after personnel of different Army units under Gobway, also commander of the anti-terror Joint Task Force Basilan, killed in a brief encounter in Barangay Baiwas in Sumisip town the long wanted Radzmil Jannatul, the Abu Sayyaf’s top leader in the province.

Indanan and his men renounced their membership with the Abu Sayyaf after turning over nine M16 rifles, a 5.56 M4 rifle and a .30 caliber vintage Carbine rifle to Army officials and local executives in the presence of Gobway.

Indanan and his companions ---Jerome Jamiri, Ibrahim Abdullah, Khalid Jobel, Rox Jobel, Annoy Jobel, Saham Ikram, Sahak Indanan, Walid Mungkay, Kading Kallang and a certain Abu Supian --- also promised to cooperate with the provincial government’s peace-building programs meant to sustain the peace now spreading around Basilan.

More than 300 Abu Sayyaf members have surrendered and returned to mainstream society in batches since 2016 through the efforts of the 101st Infantry Brigade, the PRO-BAR and the office of Salliman.