AFP agrees with reports that Indonesian couple behind Jolo Cathedral bombing
By AJ Siytangco
Published Jul 24, 2019 05:36 pm
By Martin SadongdongÂ
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Wednesday backed the recent findings of the Indonesian police that an Indonesian couple was behind the deadly twin blasts at the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Cathedral in Jolo, Sulu on January 27, 2019.
The twin explosions that occurred during an early Sunday mass killed 23 people -- most of them church-goers -- and injured 102 others, a police investigation said.
Philippine Armed Forces Spokesperson Brig.Gen. Edgard Arevalo
(AP Photo/Bullit Marquez / MANILA BULLETIN) "The media report quoting Indonesian authorities that the perpetrators in the Mount Carmel Cathedral explosion in Jolo, Sulu was an Indonesian couple comes as a confirmation of our own findings in the thorough investigation we conducted," Brigadier General Edgard Arevalo, AFP spokesperson, said in a statement. On Tuesday, the Indonesian police announced in a press conference that a married Indonesian couple was the perpetrator of the Jolo Cathedral attack. Various foreign news websites reported about it. Indonesia National Police spokesman Dedi Prasetyo identified the husband-and-wife as Rullie Rian Zeke and Ulfah Handayani Saleh, according to a foreign news report. A certain Yoga Febrianto, a man allegedly affiliated to the Islamic State (IS), reportedly revealed the identities of the couple to the police after he was arrested in Malaysia last month. Another suspected Islamic militant, identified only as Novendri who had been arrested by the police in West Sumatra, reportedly confirmed Febrianto's confession. Another news report said Yoga allegedly recruited the couple to be part of Jemaah Anshorut Daulah, an extremist group in Indonesia, to carry out the bomb attack. According to Arevalo, the AFP immediately coordinated with its foreign counterparts when the church bombing occurred. "The AFP has shared notes and provided vital information with Indonesian counterparts. Those data which were based from our own inquiry and intelligence contributed to their deliberations that led to this confirmation," he said. Arevalo said the development only proves the link between militants in southeast Asian countries. "This development further highlights the importance of cooperation and information-sharing between and among countries in the region particularly Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and the Philippines," he added. Arevalo added that cooperation must not only be made on matters with relevance to the military but also with the police "to bolster our security postures." Infiltration Meanwhile, the military also disclosed that it was currently monitoring seven foreign terrorists in western Mindanao who were reportedly working with local extremist and threat groups to train future suicide bombers. "Nag-grooming sila ng mga members na maging suicide bomber at training on other terroristic actions (They are grooming the members to become suicide bombers and training them on other terroristic actions)," said Lieutenant General Cirilito Sobejana, commander of the AFP-Western Mindanao Command (WestMinCom). Sobejana said the seven foreign terrorists, whose nationalities have yet to be validated, were most likely working with the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) and Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) in Sulu, Maguindanao and Basilan. Aside from the seven, 42 others foreign individuals were also included in their watchlist. "Watchlisted sila so ibig sabihin, hindi pa natin ma-confirm talaga (They are in the watchlist so this means that we cannot confirm yet ). Meron kasi tayong (We have a) criteria in validating for them to be considered as foreign terrorists," Sobejana explained. On June 28, 2019, two suicide bombers attacked a military camp in Indanan, Sulu which killed seven people. One of the suspects was identified to be the first known Filipino suicide bomber, 23-year-old Norman Lasuca. Read more: One of two Sulu suicide bombers a Filipino – military
Philippine Armed Forces Spokesperson Brig.Gen. Edgard Arevalo(AP Photo/Bullit Marquez / MANILA BULLETIN) "The media report quoting Indonesian authorities that the perpetrators in the Mount Carmel Cathedral explosion in Jolo, Sulu was an Indonesian couple comes as a confirmation of our own findings in the thorough investigation we conducted," Brigadier General Edgard Arevalo, AFP spokesperson, said in a statement. On Tuesday, the Indonesian police announced in a press conference that a married Indonesian couple was the perpetrator of the Jolo Cathedral attack. Various foreign news websites reported about it. Indonesia National Police spokesman Dedi Prasetyo identified the husband-and-wife as Rullie Rian Zeke and Ulfah Handayani Saleh, according to a foreign news report. A certain Yoga Febrianto, a man allegedly affiliated to the Islamic State (IS), reportedly revealed the identities of the couple to the police after he was arrested in Malaysia last month. Another suspected Islamic militant, identified only as Novendri who had been arrested by the police in West Sumatra, reportedly confirmed Febrianto's confession. Another news report said Yoga allegedly recruited the couple to be part of Jemaah Anshorut Daulah, an extremist group in Indonesia, to carry out the bomb attack. According to Arevalo, the AFP immediately coordinated with its foreign counterparts when the church bombing occurred. "The AFP has shared notes and provided vital information with Indonesian counterparts. Those data which were based from our own inquiry and intelligence contributed to their deliberations that led to this confirmation," he said. Arevalo said the development only proves the link between militants in southeast Asian countries. "This development further highlights the importance of cooperation and information-sharing between and among countries in the region particularly Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and the Philippines," he added. Arevalo added that cooperation must not only be made on matters with relevance to the military but also with the police "to bolster our security postures." Infiltration Meanwhile, the military also disclosed that it was currently monitoring seven foreign terrorists in western Mindanao who were reportedly working with local extremist and threat groups to train future suicide bombers. "Nag-grooming sila ng mga members na maging suicide bomber at training on other terroristic actions (They are grooming the members to become suicide bombers and training them on other terroristic actions)," said Lieutenant General Cirilito Sobejana, commander of the AFP-Western Mindanao Command (WestMinCom). Sobejana said the seven foreign terrorists, whose nationalities have yet to be validated, were most likely working with the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) and Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) in Sulu, Maguindanao and Basilan. Aside from the seven, 42 others foreign individuals were also included in their watchlist. "Watchlisted sila so ibig sabihin, hindi pa natin ma-confirm talaga (They are in the watchlist so this means that we cannot confirm yet ). Meron kasi tayong (We have a) criteria in validating for them to be considered as foreign terrorists," Sobejana explained. On June 28, 2019, two suicide bombers attacked a military camp in Indanan, Sulu which killed seven people. One of the suspects was identified to be the first known Filipino suicide bomber, 23-year-old Norman Lasuca. Read more: One of two Sulu suicide bombers a Filipino – military