Philippines peace in tatters after rebel attack

KAUSWAGAN, Philippines (AP) — Police special forces with orders to kill headed into the hinterlands of the southern Philippines on Wednesday, seeking Muslim rebels responsible for shooting and hacking 37 people to death in a brutal rampage that has left peace prospects in tatters.

Just weeks ago, a peace deal to end a decades-long insurgency in the troubled south had seemed within reach after the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front initialed an agreement on the crucial point of ancestral domain — the size of an expanded Muslim autonomous area.

But Christian politicians in areas that would be affected challenged the deal in the Supreme Court. Two rebel commanders — described as frustrated with yet another delay in the peace process — then led their men on pre-dawn raids Monday on five coastal towns, killing 37 people and sending another 44,000 fleeing their homes in Lanao del Norte province.

Since then, the military and police have poured forces into the region. They were initially told to avoid clashes that could squelch peace prospects, but it appeared the gloves were coming off Wednesday.

"If you want peace, prepare for war," police Deputy Director General Jesus A. Verzosa told about 300 commandos from the national police's elite Special Action Force. "These terrorist invaders want war. Go and give death to the invaders."

Press Secretary Jesus Dureza has also said that officials are concerned that the rebel leadership may not be able to control all its forces.

Last month's accord, forged after years of negotiations between the government and the 11,000-strong rebel front, called for adding more than 700 villages to an existing Muslim autonomous region in the predominantly Roman Catholic nation.

Solicitor General Agnes Devanadera told the Supreme Court Wednesday "circumstances have changed" after the recent attacks.

But chief rebel negotiator Mohagher Iqbal countered that resuming talks was "like opening a can of worms." He hinted the impasse could set off an escalation in fighting.

In a meeting with Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro, local officials and residents angrily demand all-out war against the rebels, complaining that security has deteriorated while President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's government has pursued peace.

"Whenever something goes wrong, they don't threaten the soldiers or President Arroyo," one unidentified town councilor said. "We are the ones who are threatened, shot or set on fire."

Underscoring the unstable situation, about 30 rebels attacked an army patrol base Wednesday at Shariff Aguak in Maguindanao province, wounding a lieutenant, regional military spokesman Maj. Armand Rico said, adding that the military responded with mortar and howitzer fire.

Asked if troops have the authority to attack rebel camps, army Lt. Gen. Cardozo Luna said the government has told commanders to consider that option as long as civilians won't get hurt. "The problem is these are not ordinary camps. They are communities. Rebels stay with their families. If we are going to do action, we don't want any collateral damage to the civilians."

Even as the government walked a fine line between pursuing killers and avoiding a complete collapse of the peace process, Teodoro noted the rebel leadership faces its own problems: It must clearly distance itself from the attackers and their tactics.

"The best thing to do for them is to surrender these people to us so that we can prosecute them," he said in a phone interview with defense reporters.

In a statement on their Web site, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front warned the government against launching an all-out offensive, saying it would be "the most serious blunder that this sitting regime could commit."

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