Philippine Troops Shoot Dead Algojo Badminton Head Of Abu Sayyaf Militia

Illustration of shooting (ANTARA)

JAKARTA - Philippine troops shot dead an executioner from the Abu Sayyaf militia, who in his past had been involved in the removal of the heads of 10 Filipino marine and two kidnapped Vietnamese. Police said on Friday, April 26, the shooting took place in the southern region of the island nation.

Philippine police, backed by military intelligence agents, succeeded in killing Nawapi Abdulsaid in a brief firefight on Wednesday night in the remote coastal town of Hadji Mohammad Ajul on Basilan Island. Abdulsaid has been stalked by officers for weeks.

Abu Sayyaf is an armed militia group that often commits violence. This militant group has been blacklisted by the United States and the Philippines as a terrorist organization for kidnapping, deleting heads, bombings, and other bloody attacks for ransom.

The group has weakened due to many defeats in fighting, surrendering, and clashes among members. However, Abu Sayyaf remains a security threat, especially in the southern Philippines, which is an area for Muslim minorities in a country where the majority of the population is Catholic.

Abdulsaid, who goes by the pseudonym Khatan, is one of several members of the Abu Sayyaf militia allied to the Islamic State group.

A secret police report said Abdulsaid had been involved in at least 15 delegates in the Basilan, including 10 Filipino marine in the city of Al-Barka in 2007 and two of the six Vietnamese sailors kidnapped near the city of Sumisip in 2016. The Vietnamese were arrested while passing by by cargo ship.

He was also involved in attacks on government forces in 2022 and bombings in November that killed two pro-government militia members and injured two others in Basilan, the report said.

On Monday, Philippine forces killed the leader of another rebel group along with 11 of his men who were blamed for bombing and extortion in Maguindanao del Sur Province.

Seven soldiers were injured in clashes with members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Independence Fighters.

Abu Sayyaf and Islamic Independence Fighters Bangsamoro are among several small armed groups who are still struggling to launch a separatist uprising in the southern Philippines.

The largest armed separatist group, Islamic Liberation Front Moro, signed a peace agreement with the Philippine Government in 2014 to ease decades of sporadic fighting.

The rebel commander of the Islamic Liberation Front Moro is now a member of parliament and administrators of Muslim autonomous regions in five provinces in transitional arrangements after signing the peace agreement. They are preparing for a regular election scheduled for next year.