PNoy not bothered by Espina’s absence at planning of Mamasapano ops

President Benigno Aquino III did not mind that PNP officer-in-charge Deputy Director General Leonardo Espina was left out of the loop in the planning for the January 29 Mamasapano operation, despite his strict order to ensure proper coordination for the operation.

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PNoy did not look for Espina in Jan. 9 meeting about Mamasapano ops

Relieved Philippine National Police-Special Action Force chief Director Getulio Napeñas Jr. admitted Thursday that President Benigno Aquino III did not look for or required the presence of acting PNP chief Deputy Director General Leonardo Espina during their January 9 briefing about the Mamasapano police operation.

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Iqbal admits MILF does not have ‘total’ control of its territories

Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) peace panel chair Mohagher Iqbal on Thursday admitted that the MILF leadership does not have complete control of the areas in Mindanao identified as MILF territories.

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Without the BBL, the Bangsamoro problem is not finished —Iqbal

Moro Islamic Liberation Front chief negotiator Mohagher Iqbal on Thursday reiterated the need for the passage of the Bangsamoro Basic Law as he clarified his statement that the MILF remained a revolutionary organization unless the peace pact is sealed with the enactment of the Bangsamoro charter.

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Miriam: PNoy was not completely forthcoming on his role in Mamasapano clash

Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago does not think President Benigno Aquino III has been completely forthcoming regarding his role in the January 25 Mamasapano operation that led to the deaths of 44 elite policemen.

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Security officials silent when asked on who informed PNoy about Mamasapano incident

Admitting that they did not see any urgency regarding the initial information they received about the January 25 Mamasapano clash, top security officials on Thursday could not respond right away when asked at the Senate hearing on who broke the news to President Benigno Aquino III.

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Should MILF be charged for war crimes for Mamasapano clash? De Lima weighs in

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Miriam: MILF can be charged before int’l court over Mamasapano incident

Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago on Thursday said criminal charges may be filed against the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) before the international court if proven that their members were involved in the brutal killing of elite policemen in Mamasapano, Maguindanao, on January 25.

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Revilla lawyer formally withdraws from ‘pork’ cases

Detained Sen. Ramon “Bong” Revilla and his lawyer Joel Bodegon have formally cut ties, according to a manifestation sent to the Sandiganbayan First Division Wednesday, but made public Thursday.

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FULL TEXT: MILF chief negotiator Mohaqher Iqbal’s opening statement during day 3 of Senate hearing on Mamasapano clash

Below is the full text of MILF chief negotiator Mohaqher Iqbal during the February 12 hearing of the Senate committee on public order on the January 25 Mamasapano clash that left 44 SAF policemen dead. It was the first time Iqbal attended the hearing, which was already on its third day.

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Ex-PNP chief Purisima: I am accountable for Mamasapano operation

Resigned Philippine National Police chief Alan Purisima on Thursday admitted he was accountable for the operation in Mamasapano, Maguindanao that cost the lives of 44 Special Action Force police troopers last Jan. 25.

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Gazmin admits receiving coup plot report

Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin on Thursday admitted receiving reports that there are people who are planning to oust President Benigno Aquino III.

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ARMM gov: MILF, BIFF, armed groups may have bonded vs. SAF men in Mamasapano clash

Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao Governor Mujiv Hataman on Thursday said members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, its breakaway group Bangasamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, and private armed groups may have helped each other during the Mamasapano bloodbath on Jan. 25.

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Iqbal: MILF did not know presence of Marwan, Usman

Moro Islamic Liberation Front chief peace negotiator Mohagher Iqbal on Thursday maintained that they did not know that wanted international terrorist Zulkifli bin (Marwan) Hir and bomb-maker Abdul Basit Usman were in their area in Mamasapano, Maguindanao.

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Miriam asks Senate committee to show viral video of Mamasapano killing

Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago on Thursday asked Senator Grace Poe to reconsider her suggestion not to have the video of the slain PNP-Special Action Force officer shown at the Senate probe on the Mamasapano incident.

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MILF chairman Murad relays condolences to families of slain SAF 44

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Poe condemns brutal manner of killing SAF man

Senator Grace Poe on Thursday condemned the brutal manner of killing a PNP-Special Action Force commando as shown in a video that viral Wednesday.

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MILF’s Iqbal to attend Senate hearing on bloody Mamasapano clash

Moro Islamic Liberation Front peace panel chairman Mohagher Iqbal will attend the Senate hearing on the Mamasapano clash which left 44 PNP-Special Action Force commandos dead, the office of Senator Grace Poe said Thursday.

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Nurse infected with MERS-CoV in stable condition — DOH official

The Finipina nurse from Saudi Arabia who tested positive for the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome-Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) is now in stable condition, a Department of Health official said Thursday.

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PCSO: Bettor bags P14.4M Megalotto 6/45 jackpot

A lone bettor is now P14.4 million richer after bagging the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office's Megalotto 6/45 jackpot Wednesday night.

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Caught in the crossfire, Mamasapano folk call for peace

COTABATO CITY – Those calling for all-out war over the clash in Mamasapano would do well to spend time in conflict areas, according to Bassit Accoy, an official of the remote town in Maguindanao province that few had heard about until January 25, when 44 elite police troopers were killed there.

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Solon questions PNoy’s role in Mamasapano clash

A party-list lawmaker on Wednesday grilled the regional commander of the military over the role of President Benigno Aquino III in the Mamasapano clash.

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Viral video of 'Mamasapano killing' not conclusive against MILF – Jaafar

The Moro Islamic Liberation Front said the viral video purportedly showing armed men killing commandos of the Philippine National Police Special Action Force does not conclusively show that MILF members are responsible, a report form GMA's “State of the Nation” program said Wednesday.

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Iqbal might attend Senate inquiry on Mamasapano clash —Jaafar

Moro Islamic Liberation Front Chief Negotiator Mohagher Iqbal might attend the Senate hearing on the Mamasapano clash scheduled on Thursday, MILF vice chairman for political affairs Ghadzali Jaafar said on Wednesday night.

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Oplan Exodus: 392 SAF prepared for 1,000 armed men in Mamasapano operation

The expected movements of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters and even private armed groups were among the factors taken into consideration in the Philippine National Police-Special Action Force's Oplan Exodus, a report from GMA's “24-Oras” said Wednesday.

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Palace still looking for ‘right people’ to head COA, Comelec

President Benigno Aquino III has not yet named appointees to head the Commission on Audit (COA) and the Commission on Election (Comelec) because Malacañang is still looking for the “right people” for the jobs, his spokesman said Wednesday.

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Command responsibility also applies to Purisima, Napeñas –legal experts

Despite being policemen, resigned PNP chief Director General Alan Purisima and relieved PNP Special Action Force commander Director Getulio Napeñas Jr can still be held liable under the military doctrine of "command responsibility" over the January 25 Mamasapano clash.

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Napeñas yet to submit copy of Oplan Exodus to PNP BOI

The sacked chief of the Philippine National Police's Special Action Force said that the SAF has yet to submit a copy of Oplan Exodus to the PNP's Board of Inquiry, which is investigating the clash in Mamasapano, Maguindanao that resulted in the deaths of 44 police officers last month.

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Congressmen too many to handle in House panel’s Mamasapano probe

Blame it on the numbers. With almost 50 lawmakers wanting to ask questions and make comments on the Mamasapano clash, it was inevitable that the House of Representatives’ first hearing on the covert anti-terror raid would become unwieldy at various times.

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PNoy orders DOH to prevent spread of MERS virus

President Benigno Aquino III on Wednesday directed the Department of Health (DOH) to prevent the spread of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome-Coronavirus (MERS-CoV), after the country recorded its first ever case.

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Army general: Not even a thank you for saving some of the SAF men

Apparently frustrated over the widespread notion that the Army failed to help police commandos in the Mamasapano encounter, the commander of the 6th Infantry Division on Wednesday lamented the lack of gratituge even after the soldiers' efforts to extricate their pinned down comrades from the clash site.

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Espina vows to find person responsible for uploading video of SAF man being killed

Philippine National Police (PNP) officer in charge Deputy Director General Leonardo Espina vowed to find the persons responsible for uploading a gruesome video showing the killing of a member of the PNP's Special Action Force (SAF) in the Mamasapano clash last Jan. 25.

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MERS-CoV no longer health emergency of int’l concern –report

The World Health Organization (WHO) has recently announced that the dreaded Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) is no longer a cause for immediate international concern, an online report said.

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Iqbal mum on surrender of MILF members in Mamasapano clash

Moro Islamic Liberation Front chief negotiator Mohagher Iqbal on Wednesday gave no categorical answer on whether the MILF would surrender to the government its members who figured in the Mamapasano clash that resulted in the deaths of 44 police commandos on Jan. 25.

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Palace: Take down video of Mamasapano clash

The video showing the brutal killing of a PNP-Special Action Force (PNP-SAF) commando during the deadly Mamasapano clash should be taken down from the Internet, Malacañang said Wednesday.

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Napeñas disobeyed PNoy’s order to coordinate with Espina –Palace

Malacañang on Wednesday once again faulted relieved PNP-Special Action Force commander Director Getulio Napeñas Jr. in connection with the Mamasapano incident, this time for his failure to inform PNP officer-in-charge Deputy Director General Leonardo Espina about the operation.

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FULL TEXT: PNP Dep. Dir. General Espina‘s emotional testimony

Philippine National Police (PNP) officer-in-charge Director General Leonardo Espina on Wednesday became emotional over what he described as overkill of the 44 Special Action Force troopers in the January 25 police operations in Mamasapano, Maguindanao.

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Ombudsman Morales: Purisima may face usurpation raps

Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales on Wednesday said former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Alan Purisima may be criminally charged for his alleged participation in the Jan. 25 Mamasapano operation despite being suspended at that time.

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Senators condemn brutal attack on PNP-SAF man

Senators condemned Wednesday the brutal attack on one of the PNP-Special Action Force commandos as shown in a video circulating on social media.

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Senators unconvinced of Purisima claim on Mamasapano ops –Drilon

Senate President Franklin Drilon on Wednesday said he and other senators are not convinced that former PNP chief Director General Alan Purisima had no hand in the January 25 Mamasapano operation that left 44 policemen dead.

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If true, MILF training a violation of peace pact —Deles

The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) might be liable for violating the peace agreement it signed with the government if they were training with the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF), Presidential Adviser on Peace Process Teresita Deles said Wednesday.

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Napeñas assumed Purisima’s advice had PNoy’s blessing

Resigned Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Alan Purisima just might have been giving advice, but sacked Special Action Force (SAF) head Getulio Napeñas took his words seriously because of his close relationship with President Benigno Aquino III.

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PNP-SAF commanding officer confirms: 55th Company trooper was in killing video

A police official on Wednesday confirmed that the men featured in a video clip circulating on Facebook being brutally killed by gunmen were indeed members of the Philippine National Police' Special Action Force' 55th company.

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Malacañang: Congress can’t summon PNoy to Mamasapano inquiries

Although senators have questions about his role in the deadly Mamasapano operation, President Benigno Aquino III cannot be compelled by Congress to speak about the incident that left 44 police commandos dead, Malacañang maintained Wednesday.

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Napeñas admits treating MILF as ‘enemy’ during planning for Mamasapano ops

It may have an existing peace agreement with the government, but the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) was still considered as “enemy” during the planning for the January 25 police operation in Mamasapano, Maguindanao.

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Rep. Biazon pushes for joint congressional probe on Mamasapano clash

A former chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) urged the House of Representatives and Senate to conduct a joint investigation of the anti-terror raid in Mamasapano last month to prevent wasting resources and the time of concerned government officials.

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Palace denies PNoy in Zambo to monitor hunt for Marwan

Malacañang on Wednesday strongly denied reports that President Benigno Aquino III flew to Zamboanga City on the day of the deadly Mamasapano clash to await the capture of Malaysian terrorist Zulkifli bin Hir alias “Marwan.”

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Purisima insists no need to tell Roxas about Oplan Exodus

Resigned National Police chief Director General Alan Purisima believes the PNP’s command line wasn’t broken because of relieved PNP-Special Action Force commander Director Getulio Napeñas’ decision not to inform Interior Secretary Manuel “Mar” Roxas II of the covert anti-terror raid in Mamasapano, Maguindanao on Jan. 25.

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WATCH: Espina becomes emotional in seeking answers to brutal deaths of 44 SAF men

Philippine National Police officer-in-charge deputy Director General Leonardo Espina became emotional on Wenesday at a House of Representatives hearing on the Jan. 25 clash that claimed the lives of 44 Special Action Force troopers in Mamasapano, Maguindanao.

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Solons press Napeñas on turnover of Marwan's index finger as evidence

Despite the threat of being cited for contempt, sacked PNP-Special Action Force chief Getulio Napeñas Jr. on Wednesday declined to divulge details about the turnover of the index finger of wanted international terrorist Zulkifli bin Hir alias Marwan.

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