 |
||||||||
 |
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
U.S. soldiers land in Philippines©Associated PressJanuary 25, 2002 ZAMBOANGA, Philippines -- The first U.S. soldiers to arrive with assault rifles strapped to their backs flew into the southern Philippines on Thursday to help prepare for a joint military exercise aimed at fighting a Muslim extremist group. The 13 troops arrived at Edwin Andrews Air Base aboard an Air Force transport plane, toting unloaded M-16s. They are "logistics soldiers here to support the training between the Philippine and the U.S. soldiers," said U.S. Lt. Col. Steve Woods, spokesman for the exercise. Another 10 soldiers without visible weapons flew in later in the day on a C-130 transport plane that also carried several crates of equipment. Fourteen other Americans had arrived Friday. Thursday's arrivals brought to 65 the number of U.S. troops in the Zamboanga area for a six-month mission to train Filipino soldiers to fight the Abu Sayyaf, a Muslim rebel group that has been linked to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida network. The Abu Sayyaf, notorious for kidnappings and beheadings, is holding an American missionary couple and Filipino nurse hostage on Basilan island, close to Zamboanga, home to the Philippine military's Southern Command. More than 600 U.S. troops, including 16 from the Special Forces, are to take part in the mission. News that some U.S. troops will visit combat zones and carry weapons has sparked some local opposition to the American presence. The Philippine Constitution bars foreign soldiers from fighting on sovereign soil. Seeking to ease opposition, Lt. Gen. Roy Cimatu, head of the southern Philippine forces, said the U.S. soldiers will have almost "no probability" of being in combat. "I will see to it that they will not be going on any combat patrols. That should dispel rumors that they will be in combat operations," Cimatu said. In Zamboanga, U.S. soldiers would be forbidden from going out at night and would be escorted every time they leave military bases, he said. The Philippine Senate began televised hearings Thursday on the constitutionality of the maneuvers. Several senators worried about the possible escalation of U.S. involvement in the campaign against the Abu Sayyaf. Two U.S. soldiers will deployed to one Philippine army or marine company, comprising 120 soldiers, while six others would stay at battalion headquarters. Three companies comprise one battalion. A human rights committee would be set up on Basilan to receive any complaints.
 © 2006 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111 
|
From the Times wire desk
From the AP |
