Wednesday, September 10, 2014

BI to deport Canadian national reportedly recruiting Filipino Muslims to conduct terrorist activities

From the Philippine News Agency (Sep 10): BI to deport Canadian national reportedly recruiting Filipino Muslims to conduct terrorist activities

The Bureau of Immigration (BI) is set to deport a Canadian national within the week after he was classified as “undesirable alien” in connection with the reported recruitment of locals to conduct terrorist activities.

BI Commissioner Siegfrid Mison said Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips was the second foreign national to be deported over alleged links with Islamist militants, after an Australian Islamic preacher caught last July in Cebu.

The BI chief said they are continuously verifying raw intelligence reports that about 100 Muslims from Mindanao had left the country to be trained in response to the global calls of Islamist militants to fight for Iraq and Syria.

"Based on various sources of information, he (Philips) was supposed to be inciting and recruiting people to conduct terrorist activities," Mison said in a chance interview with reporters.

Reports claimed that Philips is scheduled to give lectures to selected Muslims in Zamboanga City but police started questioning his presence a few days after he landed Sunday in Davao City.

"He was also barred from entry into Germany and other European states for his activities. Right now, he is in the custody of the police. He is blacklisted," Mison said.

To date, the BI had blacklisted 40,000 Filipinos and foreigners, including Islamic militants, fugitives and members of criminal gangs.

Reports gathered claimed that Philips is a professional instructor of Islamic and Arabic studies in Dubai, UAE who was also barred from entering the United States and Australia because his activities were considered as national security threat.

Mison admitted that they only rely on information of international community as they are having a hard time keeping Islamist militants out of the country.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=1&sid=&nid=1&rid=682642

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