Terrorist groups are planning
kidnappings on central Philippines islands popular with Australian tourists,
including parts of the business and tourism hub of Cebu, the United
States has warned.
The warning - repeated by the Australia government on its smartraveller.gov.au website - comes
only days after a report that South-east Asia is facing a growing risk of
extremist violence, especially from the southern Philippines, where a
handful of militant Islamist groups have sworn allegiance to Islamic State.
Deadly blast hits market in Philippines
An explosion hit a market in the hometown
of Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte as he was visiting the city.
The US warned
foreigners to avoid the southern regions of Cebu, one of the nation's most
popular tourist sites because of its idyllic beaches, spectacular diving and
whale watching.
"The US embassy
alerts US citizens that terrorist groups are planning to conduct kidnappings in
areas frequented by foreigners on the southern portion
of Cebu island," the advisory said.
The embassy
identified Dalaguete and Santander on Cebu and nearby Sumilon island, a short
boat ride from the tourist hot-spots of Bohol and Dumaguete.
The warning
indicates that the notorious kidnapping-for-ransom group Abu Sayyaf is roaming
more widely from its bases in the islands of Jolo and Basilan.
It comes
after a surge of kidnappings in the southern Philippines which
included the first attack on a cargo ship, despite
Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte's stepped-up military offensive against the
militants.
Formed with
the backing of al-Qaeda in the 1990s, Abu Sayyaf has reaped millions of
dollars from kidnappings for ransom, targeting Westerners, Filipinos and
Malaysians.
The group beheaded two Canadian hostages earlier this year.
The
Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict think tank warned in a report last
week that regional law enforcement agencies, which retain a strong national
orientation, are unprepared for the new threat from Islamic State which it said
has "deepened cooperation among extremist groups in
south-east Asia".
Philippine
groups have links to other parts of the region,
particularly Malaysia and Indonesia, and IS has endorsed a
Philippine-based militant as "amir" or commander for
south-east Asia, the report said.
"The Philippines is
important because as far as the IS leadership is concerned, it is the extension
of the caliphate in the region," it said.
Sidney
Jones, the institute's director, said that over the last two years IS has
provided a new basis for cooperation among extremists in the region.
"That
cooperation could take on new importance as IS losses in the Middle
East increase and the incentive to undertake violence elsewhere
rises," Ms Jones said.
"As
getting to Syria becomes increasingly difficult for south-east Asian
fighters, Mindanao may be the next best option," she said, referring to
the southern Philippines conflict zone where Muslim militants have been waging an insurgency
since the late 1960s.
The
overall smartraveller.gov.au advice for
the Philippines is for Australians to exercise a high degree of
caution but to reconsider the need to travel to some parts
of Mindanao and not to travel to other parts.
Lindsay Murdoch
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