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US says Filipino being considered to lead terrorist group

A little-known Filipino militant is being considered to lead the violent al-Qaeda-linked group Abu Sayyaf after US-backed troops killed its two top leaders, security officials said.

Citing intelligence information, Philippine Army Lieutenant General Eugenio Cedo said on Saturday that Yasser Igasan has been tipped as a possible replacement.

Offensive

Cedo is overseeing a massive US-backed offensive against the Abu Sayyaf on the southern Philippine island of Jolo.

Igasan, who had been to Libya and the Middle East, was being considered because of his terror training abroad, his good education and his crucial connections with possible foreign financiers -- traits which other Abu Sayyaf commanders lack -- two security officials said on condition of anonymity, citing policy.

Abu Sayyaf

The Abu Sayyaf, which is on the US list of terrorist organizations, has been blamed for deadly bombings, beheadings and high-profile ransom kidnappings, including of Americans.

Not much is known about Igasan's background.

His name cropped up during intelligence operatives' monitoring of goings-on within the Abu Sayyaf following the separate killings of its chieftain, Khaddafy Janjalani, and presumed successor, Jainal Antel Sali Jr or Abu Sulaiman, the two security officials said.

Explosives expert

Igasan, an explosives expert, may have already returned to Jolo island in Sulu Province, Cedo said.

"He's from abroad," Cedo said. "He has the connections."

Military and police intelligence officials have speculated that the next most likely leader of the Abu Sayyaf would be chosen from among its most senior commanders, led by Radulan Sahiron, a one-armed militant based in the mountain jungles near Jolo's Patikul town.

Time

Despite the emergence of possible successors, it may take time for the Abu Sayyaf to anoint a new leader because its remaining 400 armed members, mostly on Jolo and in nearby Basilan island, were struggling to run away from relentless military assaults, the two security officials said.

Hundreds of US troops wound down two weeks of military exercises on Jolo on Saturday that focused on development work. Other US military personnel training and arming Filipino troops would stay as long as the Philippine government needed them, US Ambassador Kristie Kenney told reporters.
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