Al-Ghozi recaptured

Nearly a month after his jailbreak that embarrassed the Arroyo administration, convicted Indonesian bomb maker Fathur Rohman al-Ghozi has been recaptured in Lanao del Norte.

Al-Ghozi, who escaped with two Abu Sayyaf terrorists from detention at Camp Crame last July 14, is now in military custody, sources told The STAR.

Contrary to earlier reports that the Indonesian fugitive had been killed, reliable sources revealed yesterday that a team of Army Intelligence Service Group (ISG) operatives had recaptured Al-Ghozi and he is in the custody of the Army’s First Infantry "Tabak" Division.

"Look for him at the First Infantry Tabak Division, andoon na sa kanila (they have him in custody)," a ranking military official said.

The sources said they are not privy to how Al-Ghozi, who has a P10-million bounty on his head, was recaptured.

Another source was more definite, saying the Indonesian fugitive is being jointly interrogated by the Army and the Military Intelligence Company (MICO).

One military official said the report of the recapture was relayed to him by his men. "That was the latest report relayed to me by my assets in the field," he said.

The province of Lanao del Norte has been swarming with soldiers following the recapture and killing of suspected Abu Sayyaf member Abdulmukim Ong Edris last Thursday.

Edris, who had a P3-million bounty for his capture, was earlier apprehended with Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) commander Mahmud Ismael while trying to slip through a military checkpoint in Sultan Naga Dimaporo town.

Both were shot after they allegedly tried to wrestle away firearms from soldiers while in transit.

A published report yesterday, citing unnamed sources, claimed Al-Ghozi was already killed, along with Edris in last Thursday’s encounter.

The military denied the reports and said they are still scouring the jungle of Sultan Naga Dimaporo in Lanao del Norte in search for Al-Ghozi.

Army spokesman Lt. Col. Daniel Lucero said the hunt for Al-Ghozi was continuing in and around Lanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur.

"We’ll do the necessary efforts to enable us to recapture him alive and get information clear doubts why he was able to escape from Camp Crame," Lucero said.

The Philippine National Police (PNP) also denied that Al-Ghozi was killed over the weekend.

"According to the Armed Forces, he is alive. I am checking, we cannot just invent something. I am telling you the truth," police community relations chief Director Ricardo de Leon said.

The effort to recapture Al-Ghozi also resulted in the killing of three gunmen while six soldiers were wounded yesterday after government troops clashed with a group of armed men believed to be protecting the Indonesian fugitive.

First infantry division chief Maj. Gen. Trifonio Salazar, commander of the unit leading the manhunt, said the clashes took place in a mountainous area near Sultan Naga-Dimaporo.

"There was a running gunbattle. The fighting is ongoing. Scout rangers clashed with gunmen believed to be securing Al-Ghozi," Salazar said, adding that three gunmen were killed and six soldiers wounded so far.

It was not clear what group the armed men belonged to, he said, although the area is a known stronghold of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

Attack helicopters have been dispatched to provide air support for the ground troops, Salazar said.

Salazar said the elements of the 1st Scout Ranger Battalion were moving in search of Al-Ghozi when they encountered an undetermined number of armed men.

Salazar said fierce close quarter combat erupted in Barangay Rebucon for nearly an hour before the armed men escaped with their wounded but failed to retrieve their three slain comrades.

Lucero confirmed the fighting, but declined to speculate on the whereabouts of Al-Ghozi.

"Our troops are there. Right now there is an ongoing encounter," Lucero said.

Fighting is taking place in an area bordering the provinces of Lanao del Sur, Lanao del Norte and Zamboanga del Sur, areas known as strongholds of the MILF.

Al-Ghozi’s escape has embarrassed the Philippine government and set back the regional war on terror. He was already serving a 17-year jail term for illegal explosives possession at the time of the escape.

The military has been massing up its soldiers in the Lanao provinces where Al-Ghozi and fellow escapee Opik Lasal, alias Merang Abante also of the Abu Sayyaf, are believed to be hiding. — With Roel Pareño, AFP