Philippines arrests Abu Sayyaf militants

Two al-Qaida-linked Muslim militants, including one wanted for the 2001 kidnapping of three Americans and 17 other people from a resort island, were captured in separate raids in the southern Philippines, officials said Friday.

Troops arrested suspected Abu Sayyaf sub-leader Tuwatin Anahalul in Zamboanga del Sur province's Margusatubig town Thursday, said Lt. Gen. Nelson Allaga.

Anahalul, also called Abu Basilan, has a $48,700 bounty on his head.

"He was involved in the Lamitan siege and Dos Palmas kidnapping," Allaga said.

Allaga was referring to the 2001 kidnapping at the Dos Palmas resort in western Palawan province. The Abu Sayyaf kidnappers brought their hostages by boat from Palawan to southern Basilan island, where they raided a hospital in Lamitan town. The militants, with hostages in tow, escaped four days later from the hospital after battling government troops.

Anahalul later guided troops as they arrested another Abu Sayyaf figure in Margusatubig. Officials have declined to name the second suspect because operations related to the case are continuing.

Last month, 14 Abu Sayyaf militants were sentenced to life in prison for the kidnapping of U.S. missionary couple Martin and Gracia Burnham, as well as Guillermo Sobero of Corona, California, and 17 others from the resort.

Gracia Burnham survived the yearlong jungle captivity ordeal, which prompted a U.S.-backed offensive against the guerrillas. Her husband Martin was killed during a Philippine military rescue in 2002. Sobero had been beheaded earlier by the Abu Sayyaf rebels.

U.S.-backed offensives have dislodged the guerrillas from their bases on Basilan, but they remain a major threat. Officials estimate their number is down to about 300 guerrillas, from roughly 1,000 in 2001.

The overall leader, Khadaffy Janjalani, was killed in September 2006 in fighting on southern Jolo island. His presumed successor, Abu Sulaiman, was fatally shot in a clash last year.