SAN'A, Yemen - A hundred jailed Muslim extremists, including some who allegedly fought for al-Qaida in Iraq, were released by authorities, a Yemeni security official said.
The official, speaking Saturday on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media, said that some of the released completed serving their sentences, while some of the others were acquitted for lack of evidence. He said the release of the 100 prisoners had been carried out in stages, with the last set free in late February.
The official added that 19 of the released fought under the command of al-Qaida in Iraq's previous leader, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, prior to his death in a U.S. airstrike last June. Some of the 19 had been convicted of plotting terrorist attacks after they were handed over to Yemen by Syria, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and other countries.
Among the released were four Saudis and also members of a Yemeni extremist group — the Aden-Abyan Islamic Army that had kidnapped four tourists — three Britons and an Australian, in 1998. The tourists were killed in a botched rescue attempt by Yemeni security forces.
An interior ministry official, who said that the released members of Aden-Abyan Islamic Army were given $1,000 to help them restart life outside bars.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070304/ap_on_re_mi_ea/yemen_prisoner_release
Unknown militant considered to lead al-Qaida-linked group in RP (Phillipines)
Sunday, March 04, 2007
JOLO, Sulu -- A little-known Filipino militant is being considered to lead the violent al-Qaida-linked group Abu Sayyaf after U.S.-backed troops killed its two top leaders, security officials said.
Citing intelligence information, Philippine Army Lt. Gen. Eugenio Cedo said Saturday that Yasser Igasan has been tipped as a possible replacement. Cedo is overseeing a massive U.S.-backed offensive against the Abu Sayyaf on the southern Philippine island of Jolo.
Igasan, who had been to Libya and the Middle East, was being considered because of his terror training abroad, his good education and his crucial connections with possible foreign financiers - traits which other Abu Sayyaf commanders lack - two security officials told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity, citing policy. The Abu Sayyaf, which is on the U.S. list of terrorist organizations, has been blamed for deadly bombings, beheadings and high-profile ransom kidnappings, including of Americans.
Not much is known about Igasan's background. His name cropped up during intelligence operatives' monitoring of goings-on within the Abu Sayyaf following the separate killings of its chieftain, Khaddafy Janjalani, and presumed successor, Jainal Antel Sali Jr. or Abu Sulaiman, the two security officials said.
Igasan, an explosives expert, may have already returned to Jolo island in Sulu province, Cedo told The AP. "He's from abroad," Cedo said. "He has the connections." Military and police intelligence officials have speculated that the next most likely leader of the Abu Sayyaf would be chosen from among its most senior commanders, led by Radulan Sahiron, a one-armed militant based in the mountain jungles near Jolo's Patikul town.
Despite the emergence of possible successors, it may take time for the Abu Sayyaf to anoint a new leader because its remaining 400 armed members, mostly on Jolo and in nearby Basilan island, were struggling to run away from relentless military assaults, the two security officials said. Hundreds of U.S. troops wound down two weeks of military exercises on Jolo Saturday that focused on development work. Other U.S. military personnel training and arming Filipino troops would stay as long as the Philippine government needed them, U.S. Ambassador Kristie Kenney told reporters.
THANKS Oorang.
(I should have scrolled down.)
Updates appreciated on this guy -- hopefully a short timer.