Military expects more Abu Sayyaf members to surrender

From ABS-CBN (Apr 26): Military expects more Abu Sayyaf members to surrender

[Video report]

An intensified military campaign to defeat the Abu Sayyaf by July will force more members of the extremist group to surrender, a military spokesman said Wednesday.

Eleven Abu Sayyaf bandits surrendered to security forces in Tawi-Tawi, on the country's southwestern tip, said Brigadier-General Restituto Padilla, adding several others also laid down their arms in neighboring Basilan and Jolo.

"We’re definitely expecting more surrenders and we’re not going to stop this operation. We will continue relentlessly and we will hope to beat our deadline by July," he told ANC's Headstart on Wednesday.

"They can surrender, but they have to surrender with their firearms," he said.
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Padilla also confirmed that elderly Abu Sayyaf leader Radullan Sahiron, through emissaries, sent "feelers" of surrendering to a military leader. However, there had been no updates on this.

"[He may have wanted to surrender] probably because of his age and his illness, but we have been following up on this, but we have not heard yet from them. Maybe they’re doing their best to convince them to come out and surrender with their followers as well as their firearms," he said.

Sahiron, who is more than 70 years old, is wanted by the United States for the kidnapping of Western tourists 17 years ago.

Padilla said the Abu Sayyaf was down to 300 members from 500, and the military was confident of meeting its July deadline.

"The statistics bear us out—the number of firearms that have been surrendered, recovered; the number of personnel who are coming out," he said.

http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/04/26/17/military-expects-more-abu-sayyaf-members-to-surrender