Philippines says kills senior Muslim militant

CEBU, Philippines, Jan 10 (Reuters) U S-trained Philippine soldiers killed a senior leader of the al Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf militant group, the military chief today said, as the country moves into high alert ahead of a summit of Asian nations.

General Hermogenes Esperon said a team of army rangers encountered Binang Sali last night near his hideout in a mountain village on remote Jolo island in the southwest.

''He chose to shoot it out with our rangers,'' Esperon today said after inspecting 5,000 troops guarding delegates to the East Asia summit on the central island of Cebu.

''His neutralisation translates to one bomber less that could carry out an attack on any target during the summit.'' The summit, to be held Jan 13-15 on Cebu, will be attended by leaders from Japan, China, India, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand and the 10-member Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN).

ASEAN comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

The Philippines is on alert for any possible attacks during the summit, either on Cebu or elsewhere in the country. Australia, Britain and Canada have warned of possible bombings in the south of the country during the Cebu summit.

But Oscar Calderon, the national police chief, said they were more concerned with planned protests by leftist groups than plots by Muslim militants to disrupt the meeting.

''We will be confronted by agitators,'' Calderon told anti-riot police officers during an inspection today.

Hundreds of protesters are expected in Cebu for the summit and the military has put hundreds of unarmed soldiers on standby to help police control the crowds.

SPIRITUAL LEADER Esperon said Sali, considered one of the militant group's spiritual leaders, was among the original founders of Abu Sayyaf in the early 1990s.

Philippine security officials have blamed him for a series of killings of soldiers and police officers and some bomb attacks on Jolo. He was also linked to two high-profile kidnap-for-ransom cases involving wealthy local traders in 2006 and in the alleged circulation of fake U S dollar bills in the south.

The Philippines and the United States had offered a reward of one million pesos (about 20,500 dollars) for any information leading to Sali's capture or death.

At least 7,000 soldiers and some U S military advisers are on mountainous Jolo to combat the Abu Sayyaf. A major offensive against the group was launched on August 1.

Officials say troops have since killed 80 of the 400 or so Abu Sayyaf members on Jolo while 20 soldiers have been killed and 90 wounded.

Forensic tests are also being conducted to check whether a corpse found on Jolo last month was that of Abu Sayyaf chief Khaddafy Janjalani. Officials privately say that it might not be.

REUTERS KD BS1506