From Reuters (Oct 2): Manila, Muslim rebels start peace talks, deal seen close

Negotiators from the Philippine government and the country's largest Muslim rebel group began a fresh round of peace talks in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday, aiming to seal an agreement to end 40 years of conflict in the south of the mainly Catholic state. Government and rebel negotiators are closing in on a peace deal after nearly 15 years of violence-interrupted talks, a potential landmark success for President Benigno Aquino that could pave the way for more investment in the country's impoverished but resource-rich south. "The road is not that long, but it's still very hard to tell if we will reach there," Mohagher Iqbal, the rebels' chief negotiator, told Reuters by text message late on Monday.  "But we are close to it...."

http://ph.news.yahoo.com/manila-muslim-rebels-start-peace-talks-deal-seen-070001664.html