Alleged Al Qaeda militant contesting Philippine elections

MANILA (Philippines): A alleged Al Qaida linked militant says he's running in next week's elections to help bolster peace and development in a small northern
Philippine town.  He also reminds residents that he's a terror suspect to grab attention.

Dawud Tyrone Santos, who is part of a militant group of Islamic converts, said that he will be contesting to become one of eight councilors of remote Anda town in Pangasinan province, which happens to be a Catholic community where his group once ran a terror training camp.

Police intelligence officials have suspected that Santos belonged to a group called the Rajah Solaiman movement, which has been linked to Muslim militant groups like the Abu Sayyaf in the southern Philippines and the Indonesia based Jemaah Islamiyah.

The three groups, to which it is alleged that he belongs, are believed to have links with the Al Qaida terror network.

Rajah Solaiman has been linked to a 2004 bomb attack that ignited an inferno aboard a ferry near Manila Bay, killing 116 people in Southeast Asia's second deadliest terrorist strike.

It has also been suspected of plotting bomb attacks on the US Embassy in Manila.

Santos who has been jailed twice for his alleged terror links, has been cleared of police charges of rebellion and illegally possessing firearms and explosives.

Currently he's out on bail while on trial for one more case of illegal possession of firearms.