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GENERAL SANTOS CITY (MindaNews/02 May)—The death of Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden would adversely affect the Abu Sayyaf, a bandit group based in Basilan with supposed links to the terror organization, an official of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front said on Monday.
Eid Kabalu, civil-military affairs chief of the MILF, said on the phone that the Abu Sayyaf, if its link to Al Qaeda is true, may “suffer logistical setback” from the death of Bin Laden.
But he was quick to describe the Abu Sayyaf as a “purely criminal” group involved in the kidnapping of foreigners as well as locals.
At the same time, Kabalu said the United States stands to benefit from the Al Qaeda leader’s death in line with its global war on terror.
The MILF, he also stressed, is not in any way connected to the Al Qaeda since the country’s largest Islamic rebel groups is fighting for the cause of the Moros in the Southern Philippines, and “is not into terroristic activities.” (Bong Sarmiento/MindaNews)
