Security execs hit public presentation of terror suspect

Security officials frowned over the presentation of a suspected terrorist by the Department of Justice (DOJ) before the media, saying it will have a direct impact on the ongoing anti-terrorism campaign of government forces.

Abdelhakim Labidi Adib, a Spaniard of Tunisian descent, was charged before the DOJ on Wednesday following his arrest in Basilan earlier this week.

“We believe that he is not working alone and media should not have published his arrest,” a security officer said.

The arrest of Labidi Adib was only made known to the media Wednesday in a press briefing following the filing of charges against him for illegal possession of explosives.

The 20-year-old Labidi Adib was caught at a roadside checkpoint in Masulo town last Monday. He was reportedly carrying a backpack containing a hand grenade, one rifle grenade, a cellular phone to be used as detonating device, his passport and some personal belongings with P8,520 cash.

Labidi Adib was captured in the hinterlands of Maluso town, where the Abu Sayyaf has presence, while a local militant with him managed to escape, the military said.

The security official, however, said the military should have kept the arrest from the public until after follow- up operations have been concluded.

He said making public the arrest of the Spaniard could derail operations and compromise the safety of security forces hunting down the Spaniard’s supposed cohorts.

“Not all information should be made available to the media. Lives are at stake here,” he said.

Army Capt. Exequel Panti, who led the military in filing the charges against Labidi Adib, said the Spaniard is a known Abu Sayyaf sympathizer and supporter of the establishment of an Islamic caliphate in the Philippines.

The Spaniard denied the military’s account, saying he was in Basilan because he wanted to meet beautiful women. He claimed to have been detained since Jan. 19 and not last Monday.

He also said that he came from the jungle but refused to say why he traveled there and whom he met. Sources in the intelligence community, meanwhile, said Labidi Adib could be among the more than 100 foreign terrorists already in the country.