Word: milf
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Only a few weeks ago, the decades-long conflict between the government and separatist fighters seemed to be inching toward a political solution. On Aug. 4, negotiators for the Philippine government and the main insurgent group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), struck an agreement that would have set boundaries for an autonomous Muslim homeland, and, hopefully, dampened the insurgency. Yet, as has happened so often before in Mindanao, the center did not hold. After a challenge by Christian leaders in the minority-Muslim region who objected to the inclusion of some villages in the proposed Muslim area, the Philippines...
According to Abhoud Syed Lingga, executive director of the Institute of Bangsamoro Studies in Mindanao and an expert on the conflict, the court's intervention set off a reaction among more radical MILF fighters. "When the Supreme Court interferes in an issue that is mainly political, it's a drawback," Lingga says. "It's a disincentive to insurgents to stop fighting and come back to the negotiating table...
...Philippine military officials believe the MILF-controlled areas are key boltholes for the bombers. "It's someplace safe where they can do their business without having to worry about local informants, because there are some hefty rewards out," says Col. Bill Coultrup, head of the U.S. Joint Special Operations Task Force that is helping the Philippine military hunt terrorists. MILF spokesman Eid Kabulu says there are no formal links between his group and terrorists. However, he says, "there might be some individuals who these people are close to or have some relationship with and who they're in some...
...Network of Violence While breakaway elements of the MILF are accused of sheltering the bombers, so is Abu Sayyaf. One former member of that group told TIME the bombers are seen as heroes. "They know how to to preach, how to provide financial assistance, and they know how to make bombs," says the former terrorist over tea and sweets in his village home on Jolo. "They are valued." Philippine police confirm that Abu Sayyaf has embraced Dulmatin's bomb tutorials. Superintendent Leocardio Santiago, who heads the Special Action Force, says Dulmatin's bomb-making handiwork has been apparent...
...Collier warns that if peace talks between the Philippine government and the MILF breaks down, Dulmatin and Patek would be well placed to launch further terrorist attacks. "There's no doubt they are very canny operatives. Patek in particular is a combat veteran of impressive credentials, an Afghan veteran who has also been fighting - going back to the 1990s - alongside the MILF...