Yap died in a gunfight with rebels in the Philippines, soldiers killed a Muslim militant, reports said Monday August 26.

The dead man was identified as Faisal Marohombsar, the leader of the Pentagon Gang, a group of former Muslim separatist rebels who are regarded by Washington as terrorists.

Marohombsar reportedly became something of a criminal celebrity after he was arrested in February this year but escaped from custody in Manila on June 19.

PRESIDENT’S WAR

While he was apparently not directly linked to the killings of Burnham and Yap, the latest development seem part of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s self proclaimed war against guerilla’s responsible for kidnappings.

Two other suspects were also captured and one policeman was injured in the gun battle on Sunday, August 25, in Magallanes about 65 kilometres (40 miles) south of the capital Manila, said the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).

A four-year-old girl, Patricia Chong, and her nanny, Winena Jordan, were freed from week-long captivity during the operation, the BBC quoted police officials as saying.

RANSOM MONEY

The freed girl was the niece of a prominent Filipino business executive from whom the gang had demanded a ransom of 100 million pesos, about $1.9 million.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on Sunday, August 25, visited the scene of the gunfight and congratulated police and soldiers, who had often suffered major set backs in their operations against rebel groups in the region.

Her visit was also seen as a moral boost for US-trained Filipino troops, who are reportedly pursuing another armed group led by a nephew of a commander of the Abu Sayyaf group on Jolo island.

JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES

The troops are trying to rescue four women members of a local Jehovah’s Witnesses group kidnapped last week. Already two other Jehovah’s Witnesses were beheaded at a time of growing concern about non Muslim believers in the troubled region.

Analysts say that the Abu Sayyaf, which Washington linked to alleged terrorist Osama Bin Laden, and the Pentagon Gang are the most notorious of 21 known kidnap groups operating in the country.

Especially Christians are experiencing persecution and death threats from these and other fighters, according to churches and missionary workers.

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