Three militant leaders killed in Philippines

The Philippines military has killed south-east Asia’s most-wanted terrorist and two other senior militants.

A United States-backed air strike killed Malaysian Zulkifli bin Hir, also known as Marwan, a top leader of the regional, al-Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiyah terror network.

The Americans had offered a $5 million (£3.15m) reward for the capture of Marwan, a US-trained engineer accused of involvement in a number of deadly bombings in the Philippines and in training new militants.

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Also killed yesterday were Umbra Jumdail, the leader of the Philippines-based Abu Sayyaf militants, and Abdullah Ali, a Singaporean leader of Jemaah Islamiyah, who used the guerrilla name Muawiyah.

The strike has significantly weakens a regional militant network that has relied on the restive southern Philippines – sometimes called south-east Asia’s Afghanistan – as a hideout, a headquarters for planning bombings and a base for training and recruitment.

Police recovered the bodies of the three militants, which were “positively identified by police and our intelligence informants at the site”, a spokesman said.

Regional military commander Major-General Noel Coballes said: “Our report is there were at least 15 killed, including their three leadership. This is a deliberate, fully planned attack coming from our forces.”