The government isn’t taking lightly the threat posed by the
Islamic State (IS) to the Philippines
So far, the military has maintained that IS has no direct
ties with the Abu Sayyaf, which has threatened to behead one of two German
hostages it is holding by Oct. 10 unless Germany withdraws its support for a
US-led air campaign against the jihadist group that has seized large swaths of
Iraq and beheaded Western hostages.
If at all, the Abu Sayyaf bandits are sympathizers of IS,
joining the bandwagon to gain popular support, according to Lt. Col. Ramon
Zagala, spokesperson for the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
Even so, deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said
on Saturday, the authorities have been alerted to the possible entry of IS
operatives into the Philippines
Help from MILF
Speaking on government-run radio, Valte said the government
was tapping the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), which has signed a peace
agreement with the government, and civilians to gather and share information to
foil the entry of fighters from IS, also known as Islamic State of Iraq and
Syria (Isis) or Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil).
“[W]e assure you that we do not take it lightly. We don’t
wish to be dealing with another problem, and another trouble,” Valte said.
“The good thing about this is, we’re getting help from our
Muslim brothers to ensure that none of these elements [will be able to] slip
into the country,” she added.
Valte said the government would verify with the military
reports that France had
raised its “vigilance alert” against IS to 40 countries with Muslim
populations, including the Philippines
Tighter entry procedures
The Bureau of Immigration has also tightened entry
procedures for foreigners coming from the Middle East and Africa following
reports that IS is recruiting fighters in Asia .
“We are not on red alert status, but we are paying careful
attention to them,” Immigration Commissioner Siegfrid Mison said in a
television interview on Saturday, referring to possible IS recruiters.
By “careful attention,” Mison said he meant the travel
histories and plans of the passengers coming from troubled places in the Middle
East and Africa would be thoroughly examined
by immigration officers.
In case of doubt, he said, a traveler will be referred to a
“secondary inspection,” meaning closer interrogation.
“There will be more questions and it may take more time than
usual,” Mison said.
Mison said the immigration bureau had contacted
international organizations to obtain a list of people associated with IS.
Swearing loyalty to IS
An Abu Sayyaf group led by Isnilon Hapilon swore allegiance
to IS on YouTube in July, the latest sign, according to a report released by a
security group last week, that the Middle East jihadist group’s brand of
radicalism is winning recruits in Asia and posing a growing security risk in
the region.
But National Security Adviser Cesar Garcia said on Saturday
that Hapilon’s pledge of allegiance to the Islamic State was a “shallow show of
support” for IS, riding on the popularity of the Middle
East group in the international jihadi community.
“We have no reports of other factions doing the same,”
Garcia said in a text message to the Inquirer.
According to Garcia, the Abu Sayyaf is not a “monolithic
group,” as it is composed of several subgroups that have either “religious or
ideological moorings” or criminal inclinations.
“We don’t think there is an organizational link between [IS]
and [the Abu Sayyaf], or any Philippine terrorist [or] jihadi group for that
matter,” he said.
“What is possible, however, is that through social [media],
individual jihadists in the Philippines
Asian recruits
Security officials believe that more than 100 people from
Southeast Asia’s Muslim-majority countries of Indonesia
and Malaysia and from the
southern Philippines have
gone to join Islamic State’s fight in Iraq
and Syria
According to the security report, Malaysian and Indonesian
militants have discussed forming a 100-strong, Malay-speaking unit within
Islamic State in Syria
On Thursday, Adm. Samuel Locklear, who heads the US Armed
Forces’ Pacific Command, said around 1,000 recruits from India to the Pacific
may have joined Islamic State to fight in Syria or Iraq. But he did not specify
the countries or give a time frame.
“That number could get larger as we go forward,” Locklear
told reporters at the Pentagon.
In addition to India ,
the Hawaii-based Pacific Command’s area of responsibility covers 36 countries,
including Australia , China and other Pacific
Ocean states. The command does not cover Pakistan
In the region, security analysts say, thousands have sworn
oaths of loyalty to IS as local militant groups capitalize on a brand that has
been fueled by violent online videos and calls to jihad through social media.
Security officials say this has disturbing implications for the region,
especially when battle-hardened fighters return home from the Middle
East .
No negotiations
The Abu Sayyaf group that threatened to kill a German
hostage unless Germany
withdraws its support for the US-led coalition bombing IS targets in Syria and Iraq
Sahiron’s group is also demanding $5.6 million in ransom for
the two German hostages, whom the bandits seized from a yacht in the West Philippine Sea in April.
But the government has refused to step in, with Defense
Secretary Voltaire Gazmin saying “the government does not negotiate with
terrorists.”
http://globalnation.inquirer.net/111749/govt-taking-islamic-state-seriously
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