The government warned yesterday that troops were ready to crush any Muslim guerrilla attacks in the southern Philippines after the rebels defied a military ultimatum to surrender the killers of 14 marines.
The separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) said any government attack on its forces on Basilan island -- where 14 marines were killed, 10 of them beheaded, on July 10 -- could cause fighting to spread elsewhere in the south, where a ceasefire has held since 2003.
The military said it was ready to launch "punitive actions" against MILF insurgents on Basilan. National Security Adviser and Acting Defense Secretary Norberto Gonzales said the government was pursuing the perpetrators of the ambush and did not intend to launch an all-out war against the MILF.
"We will look for them and find them and get them if the MILF will not surrender them to us," Gonzales told ABS-CBN TV.
He said he was undeterred by a threat that the fighting could spill over to other areas.
"We are deployed all over Mindanao as well. We will do the necessary action if needed," he said.
The rebels warned on their Web site that "hell could let loose anytime now" after the military deadline expired on Sunday.
"It's tense all over," MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu said, accusing the military of moving forces close to rebel camps on Basilan and other parts of the Mindanao in the last few days.
"Our forces are only waiting for any action from the military's part, and they would also move," he said. "They are purely in defensive mode."
Military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Bartolome Bacarro said there were no reports of clashes yesterday. But he said ground commanders have been authorized to carry out "a range of military actions under punitive actions" after the lapse of the Sunday deadline.
Bacarro said the military would not run after the MILF as a group.
A feud has broken out between the top leaders of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party on whether to maintain close ties with Russia. The AfD leader Alice Weidel this week slammed planned visits to Russia by some party lawmakers, while coleader Tino Chrupalla voiced a defense of Russian President Vladimir Putin. The unusual split comes at a time when mainstream politicians have accused the anti-immigration AfD of acting as stooges for the Kremlin and even spying for Russia. The row has also erupted in a year in which the AfD is flying high, often polling above the record 20 percent it
Ecuadorans are today to vote on whether to allow the return of foreign military bases and the drafting of a new constitution that could give the country’s president more power. Voters are to decide on the presence of foreign military bases, which have been banned on Ecuadoran soil since 2008. A “yes” vote would likely bring the return of the US military to the Manta air base on the Pacific coast — once a hub for US anti-drug operations. Other questions concern ending public funding for political parties, reducing the number of lawmakers and creating an elected body that would
The latest batch from convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s e-mails illustrates the extraordinary scope of his contacts with powerful people, ranging from a top Trump adviser to Britain’s ex-prince Andrew. The US House of Representatives is expected to vote this week on trying to force release of evidence gathered on Epstein by law enforcement over the years — including the identities of the men suspected of participating in his alleged sex trafficking ring. However, a slew of e-mails released this week have already opened new windows to the extent of Epstein’s network. These include multiple references to US President Donald
CHARGES: The former president, who maintains his innocence, was sentenced to 27 years and three months in prison for a failed coup bid, as well as an assassination plot Far-right former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro is running out of options to avoid prison, after judges on Friday rejected his appeal against a 27-year sentence for a botched coup bid. Bolsonaro lost the 2022 elections and was convicted in September for his efforts to prevent Brazlian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva from taking power after the polls. Prosecutors said the scheme — which included plans to assassinate Lula and a top Brazilian Supreme Court judge — failed only due to a lack of support from military top brass. A panel of Supreme Court judges weighing Bolsonaro’s appeal all voted to uphold
RSS