Abu Sayyaf commander surrenders

JAMIRI HAS BEEN BLAMED FOR YEARS OF BLOODY BOMBINGS AND KIDNAPPINGS

Nurhassan Jamiri surrendered with 13 of his men to army forces in southern Basilan province. They handed over 10 assault rifles and a large cache of ammunition.

Asenior commander of the Abu Sayyaf extremist group blamed for bombings and kidnappings has surrendered in the south, the defence chief said yesterday, expressing hope it would bring the “eventual collapse” of a key militant stronghold.

Nurhassan Jamiri surrendered with 13 of his men to army forces in southern Basilan province Wednesday. They handed over 10 assault rifles and a large cache of ammunition and were undergoing questioning, military officials said.

Defence Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said that Jamiri’s surrender, which came after negotiations with authorities, “will hopefully bring the eventual collapse of the Abu Sayyaf group in Basilan,” the birthplace of the small but violent group, “and bring justice to the death of thousands of soldiers.”

Emerging in the late 1980s as an offshoot of the decadeslong Muslim separatist rebellion in the south, the Abu Sayyaf lost its top commanders early in combat and descended into a bloody path toward terrorism and criminality.

The United States and the Philippines have blacklisted the Abu Sayyaf as a terrorist organisation.

Jamiri has been blamed for years of bloody attacks, including a 2007 ambush in largely Muslim Basilan that killed 24 Philippine marines, several of whom were beheaded. His group has given sanctuary to other Abu Sayyaf militants behind piracy and kidnappings, including of Vietnamese sailors in recent years, the military said.

Military officials did not say if Jamiri and his men would be prosecuted for the bloody attacks. At least 216 Abu Sayyaf fighters have surrendered in recent months.