Philippine police say rebels from the largest Muslim separatist movement in the Philippines are protecting gunmen who killed an Irish Catholic priest.
The six gunmen who shot dead Fr Rufus Halley near the southern town of Malabang are hiding inside Camp Jabbal Nul, a base of the Muslim separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), Senior Supt Akmad Omar said.
Supt Omar said they could not arrest the suspects because of the ceasefire signed earlier this month between Manila and the 12,500-strong MILF that prevents government forces from assaulting MILF positions.
He urged the MILF, who are in peace talks with the government, to surrender the suspects voluntarily.
Fr Halley was shot dead when he resisted an attempt to kidnap him on Tuesday. Initial reports said there were four kidnappers, but Supt Omar said the latest accounts said there were six men and one driver of a truck used in the abduction attempt.
Supt Omar said they had arrested the driver who said the six others had seized the priest when he kicked one of them and broke free, prompting the son of the MILF commander to shoot him.
The killing of Fr Halley, a popular figure in the south who worked for closer Muslim-Christian relations, has shocked the country.
Yesterday President Ms Gloria Arroyo ordered the police and military in the south to "intensify operations" against the suspects.
AFP