Suspected Dawlah Islamiyah bombmaker nabbed in Sultan Kuldarat
Philippine News Agency
By Christopher Lloyd Caliwan
October 29, 2025, 7:27 pm
MANILA -- Elite police officers from the Special Action Force (SAF) arrested an alleged bombmaker of the Dawlah Islamiyah (DI)-Hassan Group during an operation in Palimbang, Sultan Kudarat, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said on Wednesday.
In a statement, acting PNP chief Lt. Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez said the five-hour operation that began Tuesday night was carried out after confirming the presence of JB Mastura, also known as Abu Naim, in his hideout in Barangay Ligao.
Armed with arrest warrants for cases of multiple murder, destructive arson and violation of the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020, SAF commandos began securing the area and swooped down on the hideout. They also seized an improvised explosive device.
The suspect is now under the custody of Palimbang Municipal Police Station. He will be presented before the Regional Trial Court Branch 13 in Cotabato City which issued the three arrest warrants in 2021.
Police and military intelligence identified Mastura as a bomb/improvised explosive device (IED) maker of the DI-Hassan Group. He is listed as No. 9 on the PNP's most wanted list for the fourth quarter of this year.
"One less terrorist means a lot in our effort to ensure the safety of everybody," Nartatez said, adding that the PNP is also further strengthening cooperation with the Armed Forces of the Philippines and other law enforcement agencies in the campaign against high-value targets from big threat groups, especially in Mindanao. (PNA)
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