Soldiers clashed with militants linked to al-Qaeda in the southern Philippines yesterday, leaving three rebels and two soldiers dead just days after a top Indonesian terror suspect eluded a military raid on a nearby island, an official said.
The fighting took place in Maimbung township on the western coast of Jolo island, a stronghold of the Islamic extremist Abu Sayyaf group about 950km south of Manila, while troops were searching for a local businesswoman kidnapped by militants last week, regional military spokesman Major Eugene Batara said.
The bodies of three rebels and an M-16 rifle were recovered from the scene of the clash, Batara said. Two soldiers were killed and five others wounded and transferred to an army hospital, he said.
Batara said troops were on a mission to rescue Rosalie Lao, 45, a Jolo resident who was abducted by the rebels on Jan. 28.
Last week, troops on nearby Tawi-Tawi island shot and killed an Abu Sayyaf commander, Wahab Upao, but missed the Indonesian terror suspect, Dulmatin, one of several operatives of the Indonesian militant group Jemaah Islamiyah believed to be hiding in the southern Philippines
Dulmatin has been implicated in the 2002 bombings that killed 202 people in Bali, Indonesia.
A beauty queen who pulled out of the Miss South Africa competition when her nationality was questioned has said she wants to relocate to Nigeria, after coming second in the Miss Universe pageant while representing the West African country. Chidimma Adetshina, whose father is Nigerian, was crowned Miss Universe Africa and Oceania and was runner-up to Denmark’s Victoria Kjar Theilvig in Mexico on Saturday night. The 23-year-old law student withdrew from the Miss South Africa competition in August, saying that she needed to protect herself and her family after the government alleged that her mother had stolen the identity of a South
BELT-TIGHTENING: Chinese investments in Cambodia are projected to drop to US$35 million in 2026 from more than US$420 million in 2021 At a ceremony in August, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet knelt to receive blessings from saffron-robed monks as fireworks and balloons heralded the breaking of ground for a canal he hoped would transform his country’s economic fortunes. Addressing hundreds of people waving the Cambodian flag, Hun Manet said China would contribute 49 percent to the funding of the Funan Techo Canal that would link the Mekong River to the Gulf of Thailand and reduce Cambodia’s shipping reliance on Vietnam. Cambodia’s government estimates the strategic, if contentious, infrastructure project would cost US$1.7 billion, nearly 4 percent of the nation’s annual GDP. However, months later,
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un renewed his call for a “limitless” expansion of his military nuclear program to counter US-led threats in comments reported yesterday that were his first direct criticism toward Washington since US president-elect Donald Trump’s electoral victory on Oct. 6. At a conference with army officials on Friday, Kim condemned the US for updating its nuclear deterrence strategies with South Korea and solidifying three-way military cooperation involving Japan, which he portrayed as an “Asian NATO” that was escalating tensions and instability in the region. Kim also criticized the US over its support of Ukraine against a prolonged Russian invasion.
Texas’ education board on Friday voted to allow Bible-infused teachings in elementary schools, joining other Republican-led US states that pushed this year to give religion a larger presence in public classrooms. The curriculum adopted by the Texas State Board of Education, which is controlled by elected Republicans, is optional for schools to adopt, but they would receive additional funding if they do so. The materials could appear in classrooms as early as next school year. Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott has voiced support for the lesson plans, which were provided by the state’s education agency that oversees the more than
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