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CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY (MindaNews/03 February) — The US Federal Bureau of Investigation is analyzing a biological sample provided by Philippine authorities to determine if it belongs to the suspected terrorist who was the target of a police commando operation last Jan. 25 in Mamasapano town in Maguindanao, a report said.
Reuters quoted FBI spokesperson Josh Campbell as saying that the sample is being analyzed if it belongs to Malaysian bomb maker Zulkifli bin Hir alias Marwan who was reported killed in the Jan. 25 dawn raid in Mamasapano.
“It is routine for the FBI to process biometric information that may positively identify a subject and his or her whereabouts,” Campbell said in the report.
The clash last Jan 25 left 44 police commandos, 18 Moro fighters and four civilians dead, and has imperiled the peace agreement signed by the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.
A Philippine military official said the PNP Special Action Force seaborne unit chopped the index finger of a dead person in Barangay Pidsandawan, Mamasapano believed to be Marwan last Jan. 25.
The official who asked not to be identified told MindaNews the authorities need DNA samples to prove that Marwan was indeed killed in the raid.
“There are so many ways to extract good DNA.[]/a> with |||
(Froilan Gallardo/MindaNews)
