The Bureau of Immigration (BI) said its officers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) had intercepted a Belgian man who is on the Interpol list of suspected foreign terrorists.
In a statement, Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco said that the 31-year-old passenger, whose name was withheld for security purposes, was refused entry last Feb. 7 at the NAIA’s Terminal 3 because he was an undesirable alien.
Tansingco said the Belgian man was turned back after arriving via an Etihad flight from Abu Dhabi. His companion, a 27-year-old Belgian woman, was also turned back for accompanying an excluded alien.
According to Tansingco, the man was excluded after the BI officer who processed him saw that the passenger prompted a hit in his computer’s Interpol derogatory check system.
Verification made with the BI’s Interpol unit revealed that the Belgian is subject to a diffusion notice issued by Interpol for the alleged offense of involvement in terrorism-related crime.
The Belgian was excluded pursuant to Sec. 29 of the Philippine immigration act which forbids the entry of “any alien who believes in, advises, advocates, ore teaches the overthrow by force and violence of constituted law authority.”
Tansingco hailed the exclusion as the BI successfully foiled the entry of a foreigner who posed a very serious threat to public safety and national security.
Upon exclusion, the suspect’s name was included in the BI’s blacklist, effectively barring him from re-entering the country.
Soldiers kill alleged mastermind of the MSU bombing in Lanao
The alleged mastermind of the bloody blast at the Mindanao State University (MSU) in Marawi City last December was killed in a military operation in Lanao del Sur, according to the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).
In a statement released by AFP this Monday, the suspect was identified as Khadafi Mimbesa, alias “Engineer,” who is said to be the leader of the Dawlah Islamiyah – Maute Group.
“Statements from a surrendered terrorist, identified as KHATAB, a high-value individual in the DI-Maute Group who surrendered to the 2nd Mechanized Brigade on February 11, have corroborated the initial information on the demise of the DI-Maute Group Amir and the mastermind behind the MSU bombing,” according to the military.
From January 25 to 26, an AFP operation was conducted that resulted in the killing of nine alleged members of Dawlah Islamiyah.
In the previous information released by the AFP, they identified that among the killed suspects was Saumay Saiden (alias Ustadz Omar and Abu Omar, Saumay), who was among the four main suspects in the MSU bombing.
Abdul Hadi, alias Hodi Imam, and Abday’N, who is said to have made the bomb used to blow up MSU, were also killed.
Four were killed, and 45 were injured in the explosion at MSU that happened at the Dimaporo Gymnasium, where a mass was being held.
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