By ROMEO RANOCO
Reuters

(Additional reporting by Karen Lema and Rosemarie Francisco; Writing by Carmel Crimmins; Editing by David Fox)

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Undying Poems: Dr. Romulo A. Ramirez

Do not undermine your worth

By comparing yourself to others

It is because you are different

And each of us is special…

Do not set your goals

By what other people deem important

Only You know

What is best for you…

Do not take for granted

The things closest to your heart

Cling to them as you would your life

For without them, life is meaningless.

Do not give up

When you still have something to give

Nothing is really over

Until the moment you stop trying.

Do not be afraid to encounter risks

It is by taking chances

That we learn how to be brave.

Do not shut love out of your life

By saying it is impossible to find

The quickest way to receive love is to give love

The fastest way to lose love is hold it too tightly

In addition, the best way to keep love is to give it wings.

Do not dismiss your dreams

To be without dreams

Is to be without hope

To be with out hope

Is to be without purpose.

Do not run through life so fast

That you forget

Not only where you have been

But also where you are going…

Life is not a race

But a journey to be savored

Each step of the way.

By living your life one day at a time,

You live all the days of your life.

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Abu Sayyaf

The Abu Sayyaf Group (Arabic: جماعة أبو سياف; Jamāʿah Abū Sayyāf, ASG), also known as al-Harakat al-Islamiyya is one of several militant Islamist separatist groups based in and around the southern islands of the Philippines, in Bangsamoro (Jolo, Basilan, and Mindanao) where for almost 30 years various Muslim groups have been engaged in an insurgency for a state, independent of the predominantly Catholic Philippines. The name of the group is derived from the Arabic ابو, abu ("father of") and sayyaf ("Swordsmith^[1]"). The group calls itself "Al-Harakat Al-Islamiyya" or the "Islamic Movement". The name Abu Sayyaf was derived from the kunya adopted by Abdurajak Janajalani when he named his oldest son Sayyaf, thereby becoming Abu Sayyaf or the father of Sayyaf. Abdurajak named his son after the Afghan mujahideen commander Rasul Sayyaf who ran the training camp he attended in Afghanistan.

Since its inception in the early 1990s, the group has carried out bombings, kidnappings, assassinations, rapes and extortion in what they describe as their fight for an independent Islamic state in western Mindanao and the Sulu Archipelago with the stated goal of creating a pan-Islamic superstate across southeast Asia, spanning from east to west; the island of Mindanao, the Sulu Archipelago, the island of Borneo (Malaysia, Indonesia), the South China Sea, and the Malay Peninsula (Peninsular Malaysia, Thailand and Myanmar).^[2] The Abu Sayyaf Group seeks a 13 province autonomous region, free from the predominately Catholic government of the Philippines.^[3]

The U.S. Department of State has branded the group a terrorist entity by adding it to the list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations.^[4]

Abu Sayyaf always pro-claim themselves as mujahideen and freedom fighters but are not provided support by many people in Moroland including Muslim clerics.

Abu Sayyaf is estimated to have a core membership of 200 with an extended membership of over 2000.^[5][2]The ASG’s low numbers indicate a lack of support among the local population.

The group was originally not thought to receive funding from outside sources, but intelligence reports from the United States, Indonesia, and Australia have found intermittent ties to the Indonesian Jemaah Islamiyah terrorist group.^[6] The Philippine government considers ASG to be allied with Jemaah Islamiyah and notes that initial funding came from al-Qaeda through the brother-in-law of Osama bin Laden, Mohammed Jamal Khalifa, through Islamic charities in the region.^{[7][8][9][10]} Continuing ties to Islamist groups in the Middle East indicate that al-Qaeda may be continuing support.^[5][11][12]

State Supporters and Other Sources of Funding

The group obtains most of its financing through ransom and extortion. One report estimated its revenues from ransom payments in 2000 alone between $10 and $25 million. According to the State Department, it may also receive funding from radical Islamic benefactors in the Middle East and South Asia. "Libya was a conduit for ransoms paid to Abu Sayyaf and other Filipino Muslim groups…[Libya] also offered money for ‘livelihood projects’ in its role in the 2000 hostage negotiations…this raises the possibility that Libyan money gets channeled to Abu Sayyaf.".^[13]

Connections with Foreign Organizations

Links between ASG and Al Qaeda are the subject of debate. It is generally believed that the group received funding from Al Qaeda in the early 1990s through Mohammad Jamal Khalifa, a brother-in-law of Osama bin Laden. Al Qaeda collaborator Ramzi Yousef operated in the Philippines in the mid-1990s and reportedly trained Abu Sayyaf fighters. However, there is little information about recent cooperation between Al Qaeda and ASG. Some have claimed that Abu Sayyaf is subordinate to Al Qaeda, but others contend that because of the group’s blatant use of ransom and extortion for profit, a close association between the two is unlikely. The 2002 edition of the U.S. State Department’s Patterns of Global Terrorism does not mention any ties to Al Qaeda.

Though Janjalani’s first recruits were dissidents from the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), radical Islamic groups in the Philippines, such as the separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the MNLF, deny having links with Abu Sayyaf. Both distance themselves from ASG because of its attacks on civilians and its profiteering. The Philippine military, however, has claimed that elements of both groups provide support to Abu Sayyaf.

History

In the early 1970s, the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) was the main Muslim rebel group fighting in the Basilan and Mindanao region of the southern Philippines.^[2]

Abdurajik Abubakar Janjalani, the older brother of Khadaffy Janjalani, had been a teacher from Basilan, who later studied Islamic theology and Arabic in Libya, Syria and Saudi Arabia during the 1980s.^[5][7] Abdurajik then went to Afghanistan to fight against the Soviet Union and Afghan Marxist government in the Soviet war in Afghanistan. During that time, he is alleged to have met Osama Bin Laden, and been given $6 million to establish a more Islamic splinter group of the MNLF in the southern Philippines, made up of members of the extant MNLF.^[14]

By then, as a political solution in the southern Philippines, ARMM had been created, in 1989.

Abu Sayyaf Group under Abdurajik Janjalani

MNLF had moderated into an established political party, the ARMM. It was established in 1989, full institutionalized by 1996 and which eventually became the ruling party on the southern Philippines island of Mindanao.

When Abdurajik Janjalani returned home to Basilan island in 1990, he gathered radical members of the old MNLF who wanted to resume armed struggle for an independent Islamic state and in 1991 founded Abu Sayyaf Group,^[2] named after his own alias, which was Abu Sayyaf.

By 1995 Abu Sayyaf was active in large scale bombings and attacks in the Philippines. It was also associated with Ramzi Yousef the leader of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, the 1994 Philippine Airlines Flight 434 bombing, and the foiled 1995 Operation Bojinka) to assassinate Pope John Paul II and blow up eleven airliners in midflight. Abu Sayyaf was further associated with Jemaah Islamiyah (al-Qaeda’s southeast Asia associated branch led by Hambali^[14])^[5][7]

The organizers of Operation Bojinka, Ramzi Yousef and Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, allegedly took scuba trips to Puerto Galera. The trips may have been a cover for the training of Abu Sayyaf terrorists.

On December 11, 1994 a bomb went off on Philippine Airlines Flight 434, killing a Japanese passenger, but failing in its goal to destroy the plane and kill the rest of the passengers. Abu Sayyaf’s involvement was indicated by a telephone call to authorities announcing, "We are [the] Abu Sayyaf Group. We explode[d] one plane from Cebu." The bomb was Ramzi Yousef’s test run for the bombing of 11 airliners in Operation Bojinka which was aborted after Manila police discovered a chemical fire in Yousef’s apartment on January 6, 1995.

At some point in the early 1990s, the younger brother Khadaffy Janjalani had also joined Abu Sayyaf, as a teenager, and was eventually imprisoned by the Philippine government.

Abu Sayyaf’s first large-scale action was the beachhead assault on the town of Ipil in Mindanao in April 1995. This year also marked the escape of 20 year-old Khadaffy Janjalani from Camp Crame in Manila along with another member named Jovenal Bruno.

On December 18, 1998 the founding older brother Abdurajik Janjalani was killed in a firefight with the Philippine National Police on Basilan Island.^[8] He is thought to have been about age 39 at the time of his death.^[5] The death of Aburajik Abubakar Janjalani marked a turning point in ASG operations, shifting from its ideological focus to more general kidnappings, murders and robberies, as the younger brother Khadaffy Janjalani then rose to succeed Aburajik.

Abu Sayyaf Group under Khadaffy Janjalani

Khadafi Abubakar Janjalani.

The 23 year-old Khadaffy Janjalani then took power of one of Abu Sayyaf’s factions in an internecine struggle.^[15][8] He then worked to consolidate his power within Abu Sayyaf, causing the group to appear inactive for a period. After Janjalani’s supremacy was secured, Abu Sayyaf began a new tactic, as they proceeded to take hostages.

The group’s motive for kidnapping became more financial and less religious during the period of Khadaffy’s leadership, according to locals in the areas associated with Abu Sayyaf. The hostage money is probably the method of financing of the group.^[14]

The group expanded its operations to Malaysia in 2000 when it abducted foreigners from two different resorts. This action was condemned by many parties including Muslim government such as Libyan and Malaysia.

Isnilon Totoni Hapilon in 2000.

It was also responsible for the kidnapping and murder of more than 30 foreigners and Christian clerics and lay-workers, including Martin and Gracia Burnham.^[16][17]

A commander named Abu Sabaya was killed in 2002 while trying to evade forces.^[18]

Galib Andang, aka Commander Robot, was captured in Sulu in December 2003.^{[19][20][16][8]}

A blast at a military base on Jolo island on February 18, 2006 was blamed on Abu Sayyaf by Brig. General Alexander Aleo, an Army officer.^[21]

Jainal Antel Sali, Jr.

Khadaffy Janjalani was indicted in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia for his alleged involvement in terrorist acts, including hostage taking by Abu Sayyaf and murder, against United States nationals and other foreign nationals in and around the Republic of the Philippines.^[22]

Consequently on February 24, 2006, Janjalani was among six fugitives in the second and most recent group of indicted fugitives to be added to the FBI Most Wanted Terrorists list along with two fellow members of Abu Sayyaf, Isnilon Totoni Hapilon and Jainal Antel Sali, Jr.^[23][24]

On December 13, 2006, it was reported that Abu Sayyaf may have been planning attacks during the ASEAN summit in the Philippines. The group was reported to have been training alongside Jemaah Islamiyah militants which have links to Al-Qeada. The plot was reported to have involved detonating a car bomb in the town of Cebu where the summit is scheduled to take place.^[25]

On December 27, 2006, the Philippine military reported that Janjalani’s remains had been recovered near Patikul, on Jolo Island, southern Philippines, and that DNA tests had been ordered to confirm the discovery. He was allegedly shot in the neck in an encounter with government troops on September on Luba Hills, Patikul town, Sulu Island.

Jainal Antel Sali, Jr. (aka Abu Solaiman) was killed by government troops on January 16, 2007.

2000 Sipadan Kidnapping Crisis

On Wednesday, May 3, 2000, Abu Sayyaf guerillas armed with M-16s and rocket launchers^{[citation needed]} beached their high-speed boats on Sipadan, Malaysia’s renowned dive resort island, and abducted 21 hostages. As CDNN issued daily reports linking the Abu Sayyaf rebels to Al Qaeda terrorists and warning dive travelers to avoid the area, Malaysia’s Ministry of Tourism, the dive industry and local Sipadan dive operators colluded to downplay the threat to tourists.

The rebels have freed two Malaysians early because they are Muslims and are demanding $2.4 million for the release of the other hostages which include at least 10 foreigners.

According to Philippine military sources, the hostages are being held in Jolo, a town located in a remote province named Sulu in the southern Philippines where the Abu Sayyaf is based. The area is less than one hour away from Sipadan by high-speed boat.

Meanwhile, the rebels are fighting Philippine government troops who are trying to free 27 other hostages kidnapped five weeks ago. The rebels have beheaded two of the adult hostages and are threatening to kill five more if government troops do not withdraw

The Abu Sayyaf has demanded the release of various Muslim terrorists including Ramzi Yousef, who was convicted of masterminding the bombing the World Trade Center in 1993.

Few days after the abduction, Malaysia police chief, Norian Mai, stated that several Malaysians have been arrested on charges of helping gunmen.

More than 12 locals have been detained and police stated that more might be arrested as their investigation continues into the kidnapping of five tourists and resort staff.

Police stated that some of the arrested were former employees of the Sipadan resort who have strong ties with the Philippine fishing community, however, Malaysian tourism industry officials have denied the reports.

Kidnapping of Jeffrey Schilling

Jeffrey Schilling

Jeffrey Schilling, an American citizen and Muslim convert, was held by Abu Sayyaf for 8 months after being captured whilst visiting a terrorist camp with his wife, Ivy Osani. Abu Sayyaf demanded a $10 million dollar ransom for his release, but Schilling escaped after more than 7 months and was picked up by the Philippine Marines Corps on the 12 April 2001.^[26][27]

Many commentators have been critical of Schilling, who had reportedly walked into the camp. Mr. Schilling claims to have been invited, through a relative of his wife who was a member of Abu Sayyaf.^[28]

Martin and Gracia Burnham’s Kidnapping

On May 27, 2001, an Abu Sayyaf raid kidnapped about 20 people from Dos Palmas, an expensive resort in Honda Bay, to the north of Puerto Princesa City on the island of Palawan, which had been "considered completely safe". The most "valuable" of the hostages were three Americans - Martin and Gracia Burnham (a missionary couple) and Guillermo Sobera (a Peruvian-American tourist who was later killed by Abu Sayyaf) for whom Abu Sayyaf demanded $1 million in ransom.^[29] The hostages and hostage-takers then returned hundreds of miles back across the Sulu Sea to Abu Sayyaf’s home turf on Mindanao island.^[30]

According to author Mark Bowden, the head of the raid was Aldam Tilao, who called himself Abu Sabaya ("Bearer of Captives"), and who, out of character for an Islamic leader, wore "a single hoop earring and Oakley sunglasses."

According to Gracia Burnham, Tilao told her husband "to identify his kidnappers" to authorities "as `the Osama bin Laden Group,` but Burnham was unfamiliar with that name and stuck with" Abu Sayyaf. After returning to Mindanao, Abu Sayyaf operatives conducted numerous raids, "including one at a coconut plantation called Golden Harvest; they took about 15 people captive there and later used bolo knives to hack the heads off two men. The number of hostages waxed and waned as some were ransomed and released, new ones were taken, and others were killed.".^[30]

On 7 June 2002, about a year after the raid, Philippine army troops attempted a rescue operation in which two of the three hostages held were killed - Martin Burnham and a Filipino nurse Ediborah Yap - the remaining hostage wounded, and the hostage takers escaped.

In July 2004, Gracia Burnham testified at a trial of eight Abu Sayyaf member and identified six out of the suspects as being her erstwhile captors, including o Alhamzer Limbong alias Kosovo, Abdul Azan Diamla, Abu Khari Moctar, Bas Ishmael, Alzen Jandul and Dazid Baize.

"The eight suspects sat silently during her three-hour testimony, separated from her by a wooden grill. They face the death sentence if found guilty of kidnapping for ransom. The trial began this year and is not expected to end for several months."^[31]

Alhamzer Limbong was later killed in a prison uprising. ^[32]

Gracia Burnham has caused controversy since returning to the US, by claiming that Philippine military officials were colluding with her captors. She made the claim in a book about her experiences called In the Presence of My Enemies. In it she complains the Armed Forces of the Philippines "didn’t pursue us … "As time went on, we noticed that they never pursued us."

Superferry 14 Bombing

Superferry 14 was a large ferry destroyed by a bomb on February 27, 2004, killing 116 people in the Philippines‘ worst terrorist attack, and the world’s deadliest terrorist attack at sea.

On that day, the 10,192 ton ferry was sailing out of Manila, with about 900 passengers and crew. A television set filled with 8 lb (4 kg) of TNT had been placed on board. 90 minutes out of port, the bomb exploded. 63 people were killed immediately, and 53 were missing and presumed dead.

Despite claims from terrorist groups, the blast was initially thought to have been an accident, caused by a gas explosion. But after divers righted the ferry five months after it sunk, they found evidence of a bomb blast. Also, a man named Redendo Cain Dellosa admitted to planting the bomb on board for the Abu Sayyaf guerrilla group.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo announced on October 11, 2004, that investigators had concluded the explosion was caused by a bomb. She said six suspects had been arrested in connection with the bombing and that the masterminds, Khadaffy Janjalani and Abu Sulaiman, were still at large. It was believed that Abu Sayyaf bombed Superferry 14 because the company that owned it, WG&A, did not comply with an Abu Sayyaf letter demanding protection money.^{[citation needed]}

List of attacks attributed to Abu Sayyaf

2000

• April 23 - ASG gunmen raid the Malaysian diving resort of Sipadan, off Borneo, and flee across the sea border to their Jolo island stronghold with 10 Western tourists and 11 resort workers.
• May 27 - The kidnappers issue political demands including a separate Muslim state, an inquiry into alleged human rights abuses in Sabah and the restoration of fishing rights. They later demand cash multimillion-dollar ransoms.
• July 1 - Filipino television evangelist Wilde Almeda of the Jesus Miracle Crusade (JMC) and 12 of his "prayer warriors" are captured during a visit to the ASG lair. A German journalist is seized the following day.
• July 9 - A three-member French television crew was abducted.
• August 27 - French, South African and German hostages are freed.
• August 28 - American Muslim convert Jeffrey Schilling is abducted.
• September 9 - Finnish, German and French hostages are freed.
• September 10 - ASG raids Pandanan island near Sipadan and seizes three Malaysians.
• September 16 - The government troops launch military assault against ASG in Jolo. Two kidnapped French journalists escape during the fighting.
• October 2 - Soldiers rescue the JMC prayer warriors.
• October 25 - Troops rescue the three Malaysians seized in Pandanan.

2001

• April 12 - Jeffrey Schilling is rescued, leaving Filipino scuba diving instructor, Roland Ullah, in the gunmen’s hands.
• May 22 - Suspected Abu Sayyaf gunmen raid the luxurious Pearl Farm beach resort on Samal island in southern Philippines, killing two resort workers wounding three others, but no hostages were taken.
• May 28 - Suspected Abu Sayyaf gunmen raid the Dos Palmas resort off the western Philippines island of Palawan and seize 20 hostages including a US couple and former Manila Times owner Reghis Romero. Arroyo rules out ransom and orders the military to go after the kidnappers.
• May 29 - Malacañang imposes a news blackout in Basilan province where the Abu Sayyaf are reported to have gone.
• May 30 - US State Department Spokesman Philip Reeker calls for the "swift, safe and unconditional release of all the hostages." An Olympus camera and an ATM card of one the hostages are found in Cagayan de Tawi-Tawi island. Pictures of Abu Sayyaf leaders are released to media by the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
• May 31 - The military fails to locate the bandits and the hostages despite search and rescue operations in Jolo, Basilan and Cagayan de Tawi-Tawi.
• June 1 - Military troops engage Abu Sayyaf bandits in Tuburan town in Basilan. ASG spokesman Abu Sabaya threatens to behead two of the hostages.
• June 2 - Abu Sayyaf invaded Lamitan town and seize the Jose Maria Torres Memorial Hospital and the Saint Peter’s church. Soldiers surround the bandits and engage them in a day-long firefight. Several hostages, including businessman Reghis Romero, were able to escape. Witnesses say the bandits escape from Lamitan at around 5:30 in the afternoon, taking four medical personnel from the hospital.
• June 3 - Soldiers recover the bodies of hostages Sonny Dacquer and Armando Bayona in Barangay Bulanting. They were beheaded.
• June 4 - Military officials ask for a state of emergency in Basilan. President Arroyo turns the request down.
• June 5 - At least 16 soldiers are reported killed and 44 others wounded during a firefight between government troops and Abu Sayyaf bandits in Mount Sinangkapan in Tuburan town. President Arroyo promises P5 million to the family of retired Col. Fernando Bajet for killing ASG chieftain Abu Sulayman, alias Kumander Yusuf on June 2, 2000. ASG leaders contact a government designated intermediary for possible negotiations.
  
  
  

  

  The joint operation by both the Philippines and US army.
• June 6 - ASG leader Abu Sabaya tells Radio Mindanao Network that US hostage Martin Burnham sustained a gunshot wound on the back during a recent exchange of gunfire.

2002

• October - 1 US Serviceman killed and another seriously injured by a bomb blast in Zamboanga City.
• August - Six Filipino Jehovah’s Witnesses were kidnapped and two of them were beheaded.^[33]

2003

• February 12 - The Philippines expelled an Iraqi diplomat, accusing the envoy of having ties to the Abu Sayyaf terrorist group. Second Secretary Husham Husain has been given 48 hours to leave the country, according to a statement by Philippine Foreign Secretary Blas Ople. The government said it had intelligence that the Iraqi diplomat has ties to the Islamic extremist group. The decision was taken more than a month before the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
• March 5 - Abu Sayyaf claimed responsibility for the deadly bombing of an airport in the southern Philippines, local television reported. 21 people dead and over 100 injured.

2004

• February 24 - A bomb explodes on Superferry 14 off the coast of Manila, causing it to sink and killing 116 people. This attack is the worst terrorist attack at sea.
  
  
  

  

  The Balikatan against the terrorists.
• April 9 - A key leader of the Islamic terrorist group Abu Sayyaf was killed, along with five of his men, during a firefight with government troops on a southern Philippine island. Hamsiraji Sali and his men were killed when a platoon of the Philippine army’s elite Scout Rangers, who had been on the terrorists’ trail, attacked them around midday on the island of Basilan, an Abu Sayyaf stronghold about 885 kilometers, or 550 miles, south of the capital, Manila. Four government soldiers, including a commanding officer, were injured.
• April 10 - Around 50 prisoners including many suspected members of the Abu Sayyaf escaped from jail in the southern Philippines, the officials said. Three of the escaped prisoners were later killed and three others have since been recaptured, while three jail guards were wounded in the incident on the island of Basilan. They still did not have a full headcount of those who escaped, but local army commander Colonel Raymundo Ferrer said 53 of the 137 prisoners in the jail on the outskirts of Isabela Cityhad had broken out.^[34]

2005

• November 17 - A prominent leader of the Islamist group Abu Sayyaf, Jatib Usman, has been killed in ongoing clashes between rebels and the military. Usman was confronted in the most southeastern province of Tawi-Tawi, an island region which is close to the Borneo coast of Malaysia.^[35]

2006

• February 3 - Suspected Abu Sayyaf gunmen knocked on door in a farm in Patikul, Mindanao, and opened fire after asking residents if they were Christian. Six people are confirmed dead, including a nine-month baby girl, and five others are seriously wounded.
• March 20 - Declassified documents seized from Saddam Hussein’s government were said to the investigation that Al-Qaeda financed by Saddam have entered the Philippines through the country’s southern backdoor.^[36]

2007

• January 17 - A top Abu Sayyaf leader , Jainal Antel Sali Jr., aka Abu Sulaiman — is killed "in a fierce gun battle with army special forces" on Jolo.^[37]
• August - The military said it lost 26 soldiers and killed around 30 militants in three days of fighting on the volatile island of Jolo, in the beginning of month. The heaviest toll occurred after militants ambushed a military convoy. ^[38]

2008

• January 17 - Abu Sayyaf militants raided a convent in the remote southern Philippine island province of Tawi-Tawi and killed a Catholic missionary during a kidnapping attempt.^[39]
• February 14 - Failed assassination plot of the President of the Philippines, Gloria Arroyo.

Targeting Americans

Most of Abu Sayyaf victims have been Filipinos. However, the group has also targeted Western foreigners for kidnapping because of the larger potential ransom payments, and Americans for ideological reasons. Abu Sayyaf kidnapped an American Bible translator on a southern Philippine island in 1993. In 2000, Abu Sayyaf captured an American Muslim visiting Jolo Island and demanded that the United States release Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman and Ramzi Yousef, who were jailed for their involvement in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. “We have been trying hard to get an American because they may think we are afraid of them,” a spokesman for Abu Sayyaf said. “We want to fight the American people.”

Criticism

Muslim

• "Such acts of violence have nothing to do with Islam as a religion. The Muslim religion promotes peace, brotherhood and justice, the committee quoted the Grand Sheik of Al-Azhar, Muhammad Sayyid Tantawy, as saying in a statement. "It is better to make individuals accountable for their own actions rather than hold a religion like Islam accountable," the statement said.

• The Libyan envoy accused the group of inhumanity and violating the tenets of Islam by holding innocent people. Abdul Rajab Azzarouq, former ambassador to the Philippines, criticised the kidnappers for holding people who have nothing to do with the conflict. The hostage-takers should not use religion as a reason to keep the hostages isolated from their families, he said. Islam is against any activity that violates human rights.

• Islamic scholar Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi in Qatar has denounced the kidnapping and killings committed by the Abu Sayyaf towards civilians and foreigners, asserting that they are not part of the dispute between the Abu Sayyaf and the Philippines government. He stated that it is shameful to commit such acts in the name of the Islamic faith, saying that such acts produce backlashes against Islam and Muslims worldwide. It is known that Qaradawi supports the rights of Muslims in Philippines. Qaradawi spoke of the importance of education in the life of Muslims, stating that educational institutions in the Muslim world should review their educational philosophy in order that it may reflect Islamic values aiming to create pious Muslims good to themselves and non-Muslims as well.

• The Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) condemned the Sipadan kidnapping and offered to help secure their release. OIC Secretary General Azeddine Laraki who represents the world’s largest Islamic body, told the Philippine government he was prepared to send an envoy to help save the hostages and issued a statement condemning the rebels. "The Secretary General has pointed out that this operation and the like are rejected by divine laws and that they are neither the appropriate nor correct means to resolve conflicts," the statement said.

Non-Muslim

Mark Bowden in an Atlantic story on the Martin and Gracia Burnham kidnapping and captivity describe the couple as "gently engaged their captors in theological discussion" and finding

these jihadists to be shallow, even adolescent, in their faith. Unfamiliar with the Koran, the outlaws had only a sketchy notion of Islam, which they saw as a set of behavioral rules, to be violated when it suited them. Kidnapping, murder, and theft were justified by their special status as `holy warriors`. One by one they sexually appropriated several of the women captives, claiming them as `wives`.^[40]

[edit] See also

• Islam in the Philippines
• Moro National Liberation Front
• Moro Islamic Liberation Front
• Operation Enduring Freedom - Philippines
• Terrorism in Philippines
• Mindanao
• Khalid Shaikh Mohammed
• Ramzi Yousef

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HEALED AND WHOLE

ENDURING THE STORMS OF LIFE

George Linnaeus Banks

I live for those who love me,

Whose hearts are kind and true,

For the Heaven that smiles above me,

And awaits my spirit too;

For all human ties that bind me,

For the task by God assigned me,

And the good that I can do.

I live to learn their story.

Who suffered for my sake;

To emulate their glory,

And follow in their wake;

Bards, patriot, martyrs, sages,

The heroic of all ages;

Whose deeds crowd History’s pages,

And Time’s great volume make.

I live to hold communion,

With all that is divine,

To feel there is a union,

Twixt Nature’s heart and mine,

To profit by affliction

Grow wiser from conviction,

And fulfill God’s grand design.

I live to hail that season,

By gifted ones foretold,

When men shall live by reason,

And not alone by gold,

When man to man united,

And every wrong thing righted,

The whole world shall be lighted,

As Eden of the old.

I live for those who love me,

For those who know me true,

For the Heaven that smiles above me,

And awaits my spirit too;

For the cause that lacks assistance,

For the wrong that needs resistance,

For the future in the distance,

And the good that I can do.

American Idol Dark Horse David Cook: Is It Fair For Him To Cover Other Covers

 By Chris Harris (MTV.com)

  There’s something fishy about American Idol contender David Cook.

Cook, the rock-leaning lad with the highlighted comb-over, closed Tuesday night’s episode of American Idol, belting out Michael Jackson’s "Billy Jean" - a song released the year he was born.

But Cook’s take on the track was actually former Soundgarden/Audioslave frontman Chris Cornell’s version. Cornell’s cover appeared on his sophomore solo album, Carry On, which was released last year.

Sure, Idol host Ryan Seacrest prefaced Cook’s performance by saying, "With Chris Cornell’s version of ‘Billie Jean,’ here’s David Cook," but his introduction was barely audible, coming from the pit of screaming fans located just in front of the studio’s stage. And though Cook’s performance was very much a cover of Cornell’s cover, the Idol judges absolutely loved it and praised the performance for its "originality."

Seeing as Idol contestants are judged not only for their vocal performances but on their arrangements as well, it seems Cook has been coasting off others’ visions. Does this mean Cook has had an unfair advantage over the rest of the Idol crop?

Michael Slezak, a senior writer for Entertainment Weekly known for his Idol coverage, said he thinks Cook is smart for picking the arrangements he has.

"I think it’s a little silly to accuse him of stealing arrangements," Slezak explained. "You know, Chris Daughtry took a real hit when he did a version of [Johnny Cash’s] ‘Walk the Line’ and didn’t, at any point, credit Live’s version, but in this case, Cook put it out there, clearly having Ryan state, ‘He’s doing Chris Cornell’s version,’ and if you listen to both versions, it’s not like he did a complete carbon copy of Cornell’s, anyway.

"I would understand why people would want to see some of these contestants - if they’re going to get credit for being brave and innovative - completely change up a song on their own," he continued. "I think it’s also hard to ask them to do that. They only have a week to come up with the arrangements, and then they’ve got to get the Idol band onboard with it and record their version for the iTunes download, so it doesn’t give them a lot of time to come up with a completely innovative arrangement of a song every week. Ultimately, I think Cook deserves credit for being smart and aware of new or different versions of songs - different than the ones people are familiar with. I don’t know if he should get credit for being brave, but he should get credit for being smart and singing these songs well."

But this season, Cook has been accused of copping another artist’s cover on more than one occasion. Just three weeks ago, a Seattle band came out against Cook, claiming he’d ripped off their rockin’ cover of the Beatles’ "Eleanor Rigby." Doxology said they recorded their version of the track more than a year ago and even had it available on iTunes and their MySpace page. According to the band’s manager, the cover was what Doxology is best known for, but the guys didn’t sue Cook - they merely asked for recognition.

Even prior to that claim, several Idol fans took to the message boards to cry foul over Cook’s cover of Lionel Richie’s "Hello," one they claimed was very similar to Incubus frontman Brandon Boyd’s solo take on the track.

As far as Slezak is concerned, Cook is just dealing with the inevitable backlash that those labeled as "the ones to beat" face when they’re on Idol.

"He is getting ripped on now because he has emerged as the surprise front-runner, and I think anytime you are in that position, people are going to look for a way to tear you down," Slezak said. "It’s the nature of Idol. People have to find things to criticize him for, because right now, he’s performing really strongly and moving up in all the ‘Idol’ polls. His detractors have to latch onto something, I guess."

But no, Slezak insisted, Cook hasn’t survived on AI because he’s had an unfair advantage throughout the contest.

"He’s just aware of these versions in the first place," he said. "It’s not like Cornell’s version was a #1 hit. The average Idol viewer at home may not even be aware of that version, so he could have gone ahead and not credited it at all, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the judges didn’t know that version. The judges give him credit for bravery and innovation when he’s just really being smart and savvy and picking interesting versions of the song that really suit his vocal style. What he’s doing is really no different than any contestant on the show. David Archuleta picked Stevie Wonder’s version of ‘We Can Work It Out,’ and Carly Smithson picked Celine Dion’s version of ‘I Drove All Night.’ Cook is just picking slightly more creative and interesting versions of his songs. It’s hard to make a case that he’s doing something unfair. He’s just a smart competitor."

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`Idol’ champ David Cook ignores dating rules

NEW YORK - David Cook isn’t a rules guy.

The newly crowned "American Idol" winner says he doesn’t abide by the conventional three-day wait period after a date.

"I don’t really believe in any sort of theories," the 25-year-old singer told The Associated Press on Thursday morning before performing on NBC’s "Today" show. "I just kind of call when I call."

Which begs the question: Has he called — or texted — "Idol" alum Kimberly Caldwell? Cook said Tuesday on "Live With Regis and Kelly" that he recently had a dinner date with Caldwell, 26, who appeared on the second season of the top-rated Fox show. The verdict: he had a good time, and they’ll "probably hang out again."

Two days later, surrounded by screaming fans outside Rockefeller Center, Cook responded diplomatically to a Caldwell question by the AP: "Great girl, we hung out and we’ll see what happens."

Cook, from Blue Springs, Mo., defeated 17-year-old David Archuleta last week in a landslide victory. The rocker/ex-bartender transformed into this season’s heartthrob around the time he got rid of his unpopular (and unflattering) comb-forward haircut and grew facial scruff.

When asked if his in-season makeover contributed to his success, Cook said: "I don’t really know. I think, you know, for me it was time to get a haircut. I forgot to shave one week. It’s really all it is. … I hope that at the end of the day, I did well on my own musical merit."

Cook and Archuleta, from Murray, Utah, each took the stage on the "Today" plaza. Signs in the audience read: "Cookie I am your oldest fan. `64.’ Can I have a hug?" and "Life is betta with Archuleta." Someone yelled: "I’m missing school for you!"

Archuleta performed "Think of Me" from "The Phantom of the Opera." Cook crooned "The Time of My Life," which ranks third on Billboard’s list of the "Hot 100" singles.

Archuleta, who has a penchant for socially conscious songs, said he hopes his post-"Idol" album will include music that’s "fun and still has some meaning to it."

Cook said he’ll begin recording his album (slated for release in the fall) this summer while crossing the country on the "American Idol’s Live!" Tour. The tour, which features the show’s top 10 contestants, kicks off July 1 in Glendale, Ariz., and ends in September in Tulsa, Okla.

"I’m gonna do like a calypso jazz fusion record," he joked. "No, I mean big surprise: my record will probably be a rock record." - AP

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