Five Guerrillas Killed in Southern Philippines

The soldiers engaged about 20 guerrillas in a 15-minute gunfight at a rebel compound on Basilan island.

“We have destroyed their perimeter defense … [while] degrading their capability in terms of strength and firepower.” Philippine Southern Command chief Lt. Gen. Roy Cimatu said.

U.S. Troops are helping train Philippine soldiers to help eliminate Islamic militants in the country. They are not, however, allowed to shoot except in self-defense, due to a constitutional clause restricting foreign combat troops on Filipino soil.

The band of Abu Sayyaf guerrillas have eluded about 7,000 soldiers in Basilan since May when they began their latest kidnapping spree. The guerrillas still hold American Christian missionaries Martin and Gracia Burnham, and Filipino nurse Deborah Yap.

Washington has linked Abu Sayyaf to the al-Qaida network, who the U.S. blames for the Sept. 11 attacks.

A top Philippine official also said today that the terrorist network headed by Osama bin Laden was infiltrating the Southeast Asia region, evidenced by arrests made in the Philippines, Singapore and Malaysia.

Philippine Defense Secretary Reyes told Philippine television that the “al-Qaida network is trying to worm its way into the region… And so we have to prepare for that.”

Security tightened

In other news, the Philippine military pledged to increase security to protect American citizens, following the murder of an American tourist and a separate attack on a U.S. military plane.

“We have doubled the security of the Americans here so there won’t be any repeats of these kinds of incidents again,” Philippine Army Chief Major General Jaime de Los Santos told reporters at a former U.S. Military base in northern Pampanga, where the damaged plane landed safely.

The body of 42-year old American man killed in Wednesday’s ambush was recovered from a crater near Mount Pinatubo, 50 miles northwest of Manila and transferred to the air base in Pampanga on Friday. The Filipino military believes the attack was carried out by communist guerillas opposed to the U.S. Military training exercises. They do not believe the attacks are the work of the Abu Sayyaf.

Gunfire that hit a U.S. Air Force MC-130 Hercules flying over the northern island of Luzon may not have come from guerillas, according to National Security Advisor Roilo Golez.

“It was flying over an area with no known insurgency activity,” he told reporters. “It is improbable that this was caused by insurgent activities.”

Pentagon spokesman Navy Lieutenant Commander Jeff Davis said the aircraft had been involved in a drill which was “separate and unrelated” to the joint exercise in the south.