Senior Abu Sayyaf Terrorist Killed In Philippines Raid

Score one for the Philippines. Actually, make that score six. A senior Abu Sayyaf terrorist and six other terrorists were killed in a raid on the southern island of Jolo.

Abu Sayyaf commander Albader Parad was wanted for the abduction of three Red Cross workers on the island last year.

Gen Benjamin Dolorfino said his death was a "big blow" to the group.

Abu Sayyaf has been blamed for bombings, beheadings and kidnappings of Filipinos and foreigners. It has been accused of links with al-Qaeda.

"We have confirmed that one of the six bodies found belonged to Albader Parad as confirmed by independent civilian sources," said Gen Dolorfino.

The terrorist group has been quite active in the country's southern island archipelago and seeks to establish an independent Islamic state there. It's known to have ties with Jemaah Islamiah and al-Qaeda.

Filipino Inmates Pay Tribute to Michael Jackson

You have to see this to believe it. Filipino prison inmate had taken to staging mass dance routines as part of their daily workouts and it became a YouTube sensation. Their biggest hit? Michael Jackson's Thriller.

With Jackson's death, they've staged a tribute to Jackson:



The full story is here.

Tourists flocked to the prison in Cebu, south of Manila, Saturday for an elaborate tribute performed by hundreds of inmates in orange prison garb who became an Internet sensation in 2007 for their jailhouse "Thriller" performance.

The original performance - featuring 1,500 inmates in matching prison uniforms doing Jackson's famous 1982 routine - has been viewed more than 24 million times on YouTube.

"Even as a kid, he was already my idol," said Crisanto Nieri, 38, who danced Jackson's part in 'Thriller' in the performance and is serving seven years on drug charges.

The original dance began as a exercise routine for the jail birds.

The inmates dedicated the tribute performance to Jackson's family.

Forgotten Conflicts?

MSNBC has an interesting report on 10 forgotten conflicts that the media has missed reporting on for years. While MSNBC and its fellow media outlets are busy misreporting on Israel's war to defend itself against Hamas, or were busy commiting media malpractice in the course of reporting the war and following insurgency in Iraq, there are numerous other conflicts that got short shrift around the world.

The highlighted conflicts: Colombia, Sri Lanka, Ivory Coast, Central African Republic, DR Congo, Zimbabwe, Sudan (Darfur), Somalia, East Timor, and Chechnya.

MSNBC has actually done a better job reporting on the situation in Zimbabwe than other American news outlets, but sadly their coverage of most other conflicts is lacking. At the same time, there are three other hotspots that MSNBC ignored entirely:

The Thai insurgency. Islamic terrorists are busy trying to establish an Islamic state in Southern Thailand; more than 3,000 Thais have been killed and the fighting has gone on for years.

The India/Pakistan border. The Line of Control separates these two nuclear powers and the recent mass murder of Indians in Mumbai once again highlights the tenuous relations between India and Pakistan. There have been numerous skirmishes across the Line of Control which marks the border region between the two countries. Pakistan has sent troops previously meant to fight against the Taliban to the Line of Control in response to India's military moves following the Mumbai attacks, which were traced back to Pakistan' Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorist group, which has repeatedly received assistance from Pakistan's intel services, the ISI.

Philippines. The Moro Island Liberation Front (MILF) has been waging an insurgency against the Manila government for years, and it's sent hundreds of thousands of refugees fleeing from their war. The terrorist group operates in conjunction with Abu Sayaaf, which itself is affiliated with al Qaeda.

Why were those three regions and conflicts omitted from the list? Could it have anything to do with the fact that all three are fueled by Islamists seeking jihad and the expansion of Islamic rule?

Philippines Nabs Two Abu Sayyaf Bigwigs

Two al-Qaida-linked Muslim militants, including one wanted for the 2001 kidnapping of three Americans and 17 other people from a resort island, were captured in separate raids in the southern Philippines, officials said Friday.

Troops arrested suspected Abu Sayyaf sub-leader Tuwatin Anahalul in Zamboanga del Sur province's Margusatubig town Thursday, said Lt. Gen. Nelson Allaga.

Anahalul, also called Abu Basilan, has a $48,700 bounty on his head.

"He was involved in the Lamitan siege and Dos Palmas kidnapping," Allaga said.

Allaga was referring to the 2001 kidnapping at the Dos Palmas resort in western Palawan province. The Abu Sayyaf kidnappers brought their hostages by boat from Palawan to southern Basilan island, where they raided a hospital in Lamitan town. The militants, with hostages in tow, escaped four days later from the hospital after battling government troops.

Anahalul later guided troops as they arrested another Abu Sayyaf figure in Margusatubig. Officials have declined to name the second suspect because operations related to the case are continuing.

Last month, 14 Abu Sayyaf militants were sentenced to life in prison for the kidnapping of U.S. missionary couple Martin and Gracia Burnham, as well as Guillermo Sobero of Corona, California, and 17 others from the resort.

It remains to be seen whether they will indeed serve life in prison or find themselves released short of the full sentence as has been the case elsewhere in the world, including Indonesia and in the Middle East. We've also seen fatal consequences from the release of individuals held at GitMo - they return to jihad and are found fighting time and time again.

Philippines Goes With Appeasement

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Car Bomb Rocks Philippine Parliament

An explosion rocked an entrance to the Philippine House of Representatives late Tuesday, killing a driver and injuring at least seven people, including lawmakers, officials said.

Metropolitan Manila police chief Geary Barias said a lawmaker’s driver was killed, while ABS-CBN TV network said a number of cars were damaged and at least three lawmakers were among those injured.

The blast happened shortly as the House ended its session shortly after 8 p.m.

There's no word on who might have been responsible, but President Arroyo is facing a third impeachment complaint in three years, and you also have Islamic terrorist groups operating in the country as well. The House will meet as normal on Wednesday as it continues its impeachment hearings.

UPDATE:
The death toll is now two, and it's looking like Muslim terrorists were involved. That would be Abu Sayyaf, which has been known to operate in conjunction with al Qaeda.

UPDATE:
The NY Times article, which now reports that three were dead in the attack, waits until the tenth paragraph before introducing Abu Sayyaf and the likely ties between the terrorist group and the bombing.

Clashes in the Philippines

The Philippine military says 57 people, including 26 soldiers, have been killed in clashes between government troops and militants on the country's volatile southern island of Jolo.

Military officials said Friday fighting broke out Thursday when rebels from the Abu Sayyaf militant group and Moro National Liberation Front fighters ambushed a group of soldiers transporting supplies.

At least 31 rebels have been killed in the fighting.

The clashes are the latest in a recent wave of violence in the southern Philippines and more troops are being deployed to respond to the surge in violence.

Troops have been massing in the south since early July when 14 marines were killed on the nearby island of Basilan. Ten of them were beheaded.

Abu Sayyaf is aligned with al Qaeda and Jemaah Islamiyah, and their goals are the same - to impose Islamic rule over their dominion. They've used the Phillipine archipelago for shelter from military action, and engage in piracy, kidnapping, and sabotage in addition to ambushing military forces arrayed against them.