Aquino urges world leaders to remain vigilant/united following the death of Osama Bin Laden
President Benigno S. Aquino III called on all nations to continue to consistently and courageously raise their collective voice against religious hatred, political intolerance and terrorism following the death of the world’s most wanted man, Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.
“The death of Osama bin Laden should not lull us into complacency. The world must continue to consistently and courageously raise its collective voice against religious hatred, political intolerance, and terrorism of all kinds. We must remain vigilant and united in pursuing peace, pluralism, and collective efforts at security,” the Chief Executive said in a statement released on Monday.
Osama had been killed in a Pakistani compound in an operation by United States armed forces on Sunday, nearly 10 years after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon which killed some 3,000 innocent civilians.
The President said that the death of Osama bin Laden marks a signal defeat for the forces of extremism and terrorism. He added that Bin Laden’s death also “represents the end of the efforts of one man to stoke the fires of sectarian hatred and promote terrorism on a scale unprecedented in the history of mass murder.”
“Let us not forget that this is not just an achievement for the United States. It has brought justice to over a dozen Filipinos who lost their lives on September 11, 2001 in the World Trade Center,” he stressed.
“One sword has been beaten down; we must continue to be dedicated to the principle of beating the swords of terrorism into the plowshares of progress and peace,” the President added.
The President noted that together with his national security team, “we continue to take all relevant precautions and steps to ensure the safety of our people.”
Being part of the global war on terrorism, the President said that as a democratic and free people, the Philippines remain committed to combat terrorism and are in solidarity with the peoples of the United Nations. (PCOO)
Malacañang assures govt's security measures in place
The Aquino administration assured that the government’s security measures are in place saying that the national security forces are on full alert to avert any terror attacks from secessionist groups following a United States government report on the death of terrorist leader Osama bin Laden.
In a media briefing in Malacañang, on Monday, Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda bared that all measures are in place although there are no reports yet of any possible retaliatory attacks from local factions linked to the Al Qaeda group.
“Right now we are not aware of any possible retaliatory attacks but again, like the President (Aquino) said we have taken all relevant precautions and steps to ensure the security and safety of our people”, Lacierda said.
Lacierda noted that President Benigno S. Aquino III has been constantly communicating with his key security officials to closely monitor the movements in major places of concern in the country.
“The President is in constant communication with the National Security Adviser so we have taken all relevant precautions. So far, we have already communicated also with the AFP, PNP, NAIA so everything is in place, the necessary precautions are there…”, he said.
Lacierda added that the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) have already directed their respective concerned units to step up measures to ensure the safety of the Filipino people.
“Just to let you know, we have spoken to the PNP, we are currently at full alert…this full alert has been in place since the Holy Week and the AFP’s Gen. Ed Oban has asked his J2 to do an assessment on the situation as well as his J3 to monitor the situation in Mindanao…”, Lacierda stressed.
Also being closely monitored, Lacierda said, are the key diplomatic installations and airports in the country.
“We have not received any request from the US Embassy but the PNP has taken the initiative of enhancing security of the patrols in the US embassy premises,…”, Lacierda said.
“This has been ongoing anyway, the fight against terrorism has been ongoing. So, this has not changed our level of vigilance towards terrorism”, he said.
“Because of this unprecedented event (reported death of Bin Laden), we’re making sure that all the agencies are in place and all our steps are in place. Also we’d like to mention that the NAIA administrator, Gen. Honrado has increased security also in the airports…” Lacierda said.
On Monday, (Manila time), US president Barrack Obama confirmed the al-Qaeda leader's death, saying he has been killed in a firefight following the US raid in Abbottabad.
President Obama said bin Laden, the most-wanted fugitive on the US list, has been killed on Sunday in a US operation in the Pakistani city of Abbottabad, about 150km north of Islamabad. (PCOO)
Statement of Executive Secretary Paquito N. Ochoa, Jr. on reported death of Osama Bin Laden
The reported death of Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden is a step forward in global efforts to put an end to terrorism.
However, we should not allow this recent turn of events to lull us into complacency. On the contrary, we should remain vigilant and continue to work with other nations to prevent further acts of terror.
In the wake of this development, as chairperson of the Anti-Terrorism Council I have reiterated to our national security agencies the importance of maintaining ongoing measures to secure our country from terrorist threats. We ask the public to be alert and request your cooperation as we continue to work to ensure the safety of our people. (PCOO)
President Benigno S. Aquino III called on all nations to continue to consistently and courageously raise their collective voice against religious hatred, political intolerance and terrorism following the death of the world’s most wanted man, Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.
“The death of Osama bin Laden should not lull us into complacency. The world must continue to consistently and courageously raise its collective voice against religious hatred, political intolerance, and terrorism of all kinds. We must remain vigilant and united in pursuing peace, pluralism, and collective efforts at security,” the Chief Executive said in a statement released on Monday.
Osama had been killed in a Pakistani compound in an operation by United States armed forces on Sunday, nearly 10 years after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon which killed some 3,000 innocent civilians.
The President said that the death of Osama bin Laden marks a signal defeat for the forces of extremism and terrorism. He added that Bin Laden’s death also “represents the end of the efforts of one man to stoke the fires of sectarian hatred and promote terrorism on a scale unprecedented in the history of mass murder.”
“Let us not forget that this is not just an achievement for the United States. It has brought justice to over a dozen Filipinos who lost their lives on September 11, 2001 in the World Trade Center,” he stressed.
“One sword has been beaten down; we must continue to be dedicated to the principle of beating the swords of terrorism into the plowshares of progress and peace,” the President added.
The President noted that together with his national security team, “we continue to take all relevant precautions and steps to ensure the safety of our people.”
Being part of the global war on terrorism, the President said that as a democratic and free people, the Philippines remain committed to combat terrorism and are in solidarity with the peoples of the United Nations. (PCOO)
Malacañang assures govt's security measures in place
The Aquino administration assured that the government’s security measures are in place saying that the national security forces are on full alert to avert any terror attacks from secessionist groups following a United States government report on the death of terrorist leader Osama bin Laden.
In a media briefing in Malacañang, on Monday, Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda bared that all measures are in place although there are no reports yet of any possible retaliatory attacks from local factions linked to the Al Qaeda group.
“Right now we are not aware of any possible retaliatory attacks but again, like the President (Aquino) said we have taken all relevant precautions and steps to ensure the security and safety of our people”, Lacierda said.
Lacierda noted that President Benigno S. Aquino III has been constantly communicating with his key security officials to closely monitor the movements in major places of concern in the country.
“The President is in constant communication with the National Security Adviser so we have taken all relevant precautions. So far, we have already communicated also with the AFP, PNP, NAIA so everything is in place, the necessary precautions are there…”, he said.
Lacierda added that the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) have already directed their respective concerned units to step up measures to ensure the safety of the Filipino people.
“Just to let you know, we have spoken to the PNP, we are currently at full alert…this full alert has been in place since the Holy Week and the AFP’s Gen. Ed Oban has asked his J2 to do an assessment on the situation as well as his J3 to monitor the situation in Mindanao…”, Lacierda stressed.
Also being closely monitored, Lacierda said, are the key diplomatic installations and airports in the country.
“We have not received any request from the US Embassy but the PNP has taken the initiative of enhancing security of the patrols in the US embassy premises,…”, Lacierda said.
“This has been ongoing anyway, the fight against terrorism has been ongoing. So, this has not changed our level of vigilance towards terrorism”, he said.
“Because of this unprecedented event (reported death of Bin Laden), we’re making sure that all the agencies are in place and all our steps are in place. Also we’d like to mention that the NAIA administrator, Gen. Honrado has increased security also in the airports…” Lacierda said.
On Monday, (Manila time), US president Barrack Obama confirmed the al-Qaeda leader's death, saying he has been killed in a firefight following the US raid in Abbottabad.
President Obama said bin Laden, the most-wanted fugitive on the US list, has been killed on Sunday in a US operation in the Pakistani city of Abbottabad, about 150km north of Islamabad. (PCOO)
Statement of Executive Secretary Paquito N. Ochoa, Jr. on reported death of Osama Bin Laden
The reported death of Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden is a step forward in global efforts to put an end to terrorism.
However, we should not allow this recent turn of events to lull us into complacency. On the contrary, we should remain vigilant and continue to work with other nations to prevent further acts of terror.
In the wake of this development, as chairperson of the Anti-Terrorism Council I have reiterated to our national security agencies the importance of maintaining ongoing measures to secure our country from terrorist threats. We ask the public to be alert and request your cooperation as we continue to work to ensure the safety of our people. (PCOO)
