Mayor Rodrigo Duterte has tagged the Indonesia-based Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) as responsible for the Sasa wharf blast in the city that killed 16 people last week. “The recent bombing was the handiwork of the Jemaah Islamiyah followers here who are also connected with the al-Qaeda,” Duterte said. The JI, a regional Islamic group linked by Western intelligence agencies to Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaeda network, carried out the deadly bombings in Bali, Indonesia which killed 189 people last October. Duterte said the JI followers who carried out the bombing are members of special yrban terrorist action group (Sutag) of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). He claimed Sutag, operating independently from the MILF but still part of the rebel organization, represented the JI terror cell in the Philippines. “It would not be wrong to conclude that these MILF leaders like (chairman Hashim) Salamat know about it,” Duterte said. He said Sutag has been involved in 20 bombing incidents in Mindanao this year. “I expect more bombs and let’s prepare for it,” the mayor warned. Duterte also said they are looking for five Arabs who have reportedly slipped into the country with a mission to sow terror in key cities in Mindanao. Full Story
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