Senate approves Philippines-Indonesia maritime boundary treaty

Camille Elemia

Under the treaty, there will be a clear boundary between the two nations, helping Filipino and Indonesian fishermen to operate peacefully and properly

MANILA, Philippines – The Senate on Monday, June 3, concurred with the ratification of the treaty that draws a boundary between the overlapping exclusive economic zones (EEZs) of the Philippines and Indonesia.

Voting 20-0, senators adopted Senate Resolution No. 1048, which concurs with the historic agreement signed in May 2014. It was the Philippines’ first maritime boundary treaty.

To continue reading, please click here.

Source: rappler.com

MARITIME BOUNDARY DEAL. The map shows the exclusive economic zone boundary between the Philippines and Indonesia. Photo from the Department of Foreign Affairs

Dutch hostage killed while trying to escape from militants in Philippines

MANILA (Reuters) – A Dutch photographer held hostage by Islamic State-linked militants in the Philippines since 2012 was killed on Friday by his captors when he tried to escape during a firefight on a remote southern island, the military said.

Ewold Horn, a wildlife photographer, was shot by his guards from the Abu Sayyaf group when he tried to flee during a clash between government troops and the militants, said Brigadier General Divino Rey Pabayo, commander of a Joint Task Force on Sulu island.

To continue reading, please click here.

Source: reuters.com

Maritime Security News: You may recall that only ten days ago, a Philippine National Police commander had claimed that Horn had joined the group. More here:
https://maritimesecurity.news.blog/2019/05/21/dutch-hostage-joins-abu-sayyaf/

AFP to deploy 1st Brigade Combat Team in Sulu for anti-ASG ops

By Priam Nepomuceno

MANILA — The military will deploy the 1st Brigade Combat Team (1BCT) to Sulu in line with ongoing efforts to neutralize the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) terrorists.

“Now that the election period is over and national candidates have been proclaimed, we are redeploying forces to security challenged areas like Sulu Archipelago for focused military operations,” Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) spokesperson, Marine Brig. Gen. Edgard Arevalo said in an interview with reporters Thursday.

To continue reading, please click here.

Source: pna.gov.ph

Sabah dusk-to-dawn sea curfew extended by another two weeks

By Stephanie Lee

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah’s dusk-to-dawn sea curfew will be extended for another two weeks until June 10, says Police Commissioner Datuk Omar Mammah.

He said the extension of the 6pm to 6am curfew was needed due to continuous threats from cross-border criminals, including from kidnap-for-ransom groups.

To continue reading, please click here.

Source: thestar.com.my

The Deadly Evolution of Abu Sayyaf and the Sea

By Meghan Curran

On the morning of January 27, 2019, two bombs exploded inside the Cathedral of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, in Jolo on the Sulu Province in the southern Philippines. Tearing a hole through the cathedral during a Sunday service, the bombs claimed 20 lives, injured dozens more, and propelled Islamist extremism in the Philippines back into international headlines. In the aftermath of the blast, Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte promised to “pursue to the ends of the Earth the ruthless perpetrators behind [the] dastardly crime,”as the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG), the country’s notoriously violent Islamic separatist group, claimed responsibility for the attack. While President Duterte may not need to go to the “ends of the Earth” to put an end to the ASG-fueled terror, his government will certainly need to act beyond its own shores. Illicit maritime activities are at the root of ASG funding and operations, and ensuring the group’s defeat will require focused government efforts to improve maritime security in its area of operations.

To continue reading, please click here.

Source: cimsec.org

Dutch hostage joins Abu Sayyaf

SULU: Philippine National Police (PNP) Sulu Provincial Commander Pablo Labra reported Saturday that a Dutch hostage abducted by the Abu Sayyaf militants seven years has joined the terrorist group.

Identified as 57-year old Ewold Horn, Labra said the kidnap victim turned outlaw together with Swiss national Lorenzo Vinciguerra were adopted by Abu Sayyaf militants and suspected MNLF members in Tawi-Tawi in 2012.

To continue reading, please click here.

Source:dailyexpress.com.my

US Coast Guard ship arrives in PH to boost both nations’ maritime security capabilities

By Betheena Kae Unite

An American vessel that will conduct several exercises and improve the maritime security capabilities of the United States Coast Guard and the Philippines’ arrived in Manila Wednesday.

The United States Coast Guard National Security Cutter Bertholf, with its commanding officer Captain John Discroll, arrived at Pier 15 in Manila, following the capability training exercise conducted by both nations’ Coast Guard in the West Philippine Sea Tuesday.

To continue reading, please click here.

Source: news.mb.com.ph

PHL, Indonesian navies wrap up coordinated border patrol activities

The first leg of the Border Coordinated Patrol of the Philippine and Indonesian navies has ended, with the aim of securing the common border between the two countries and stop maritime and sea crimes including smuggling and piracy.

The patrol ships of both countries were expected to have reached their final point in the territorial waters of Indonesia along the Celebes Sea on Saturday.

To continue reading, please click here.

Source: gmanetwork.com

Philippines, Indonesia kick off coordinated border naval patrol

MANILA, May 2 (Xinhua) — The Philippines and Indonesia kicked off on Thursday their joint patrol in the Sulu-Celebes Seas, a move aimed at strengthening security cooperation to combat piracy, smuggling and maritime attacks in the region.

“The main mission is to secure the common border, to curtail maritime crimes, and stop various sea crimes like smuggling and piracy,” Ezra Balagtey, spokesman for the Eastern Mindanao Command of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, said in a statement.

To continue reading, please click here.

Source: xinhuanet.com

Indonesia to Sink More Foreign Boats Amid New Maritime Tensions with Vietnam

Indonesia next weekend plans to sink dozens of foreign boats that were seized after straying illegally into its waters, including many vessels from Vietnam, the fisheries minister said Monday amid fresh maritime tensions between Hanoi and Jakarta near the South China Sea.

Also on Monday, Indonesia’s foreign ministry said it summoned Hanoi’s deputy ambassador after the Indonesian navy claimed that two Vietnamese coast guard vessels had rammed one of its naval ships patrolling against illegal fishing near Indonesia’s Natuna Islands.

To continue reading, please click here.

Source: rfa.org