Abu Sayyaf, officially known by the Islamic State as the Islamic State – East Asia Province, is a Jihadist militant and pirate group that follows the Wahhabi doctrine of Sunni Islam. It is based in and around Jolo and Basilan islands in the southwestern part of the Philippines, where for more than four decades, Moro groups have been engaged in an insurgency seeking to make Moro Province independent. The group is considered violent and was responsible for the Philippines' worst terrorist attack, the bombing of MV Superferry 14 in 2004, which killed 116 people. The name of the group is derived from the Arabic abu, and sayyaf. As of April 2023, the group is estimated to have about 20 members, down from 1,250 in 2000. They use mostly improvised explosive devices, mortars and automatic rifles.
Khadaffy Abubakar Janjalani was a Filipino Islamist militant who was the leader of the Moro militant group known as Abu Sayyaf and the leader of one of its factions. He was a staunch Wahhabi follower.
The Moro conflict was an insurgency in the Mindanao region of the Philippines, which involved multiple armed groups. Peace deals have been signed between the Philippine government and two major armed groups, the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), but other smaller armed groups continue to exist. In 2017, the peace council settled around 138 clan conflicts.
Isnilon Totoni Hapilon, also known by the nom de guerreAbu Abdullah al-Filipini, was a Filipino Islamist militant affiliated with ISIS. He was formerly leader of Abu Sayyaf Group, before its battalions pledged their allegiance to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. An April 2016 issue of ISIL's weekly newsletter Al Naba said that Hapilon had been appointed as "emir of all Islamic State forces in the Philippines".
Radullan Sahiron is a Moro Islamic militant who is the leader of Abu Sayyaf. He is said to have taken command of the organization following the death of Khadaffy Janjalani in September 2006.
The Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF), also known as the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Movement, is an Islamist militant organization based in Mindanao, the Philippines. It follows the Wahhabi ideology that is currently being spread by Wahhabi preachers in the country. It is a smaller player in the overall Moro insurgency in the Philippines and is mostly active in Maguindanao and other places in central Mindanao. It is a breakaway group from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front founded by Ameril Umbra Kato. Following Kato's death, the group split into three factions, one of which has aligned with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), while the other two are less radical.
Battle of Basilan was a military offensive launched by the Philippine military to apprehend two lead commanders in the Abu Sayyaf Islamic militia wanted for corruption, money laundering, and terrorism related charges. The main cause of the operation was Sayyaf leader Indama and his followers threatening and attempting to extort money from a circumferential road network. The two-day offensive ended with both suspects evading capture and the island of Basilan falling under government authority. Both the army and MNLF collaborated in fighting alongside for a duration of the operation the first such instance since a truce. However collaborators within the Sayyaf militia included members of the MNLF who sympathized with their cause or had public relations with some of the militants.
The Battle of Tipo-Tipo was a military engagement that began on 9 April 2016 at Tipo-Tipo, Basilan Island, Philippines between forces of the Philippine Army and members of the Abu Sayyaf militant group. The battle resulted in dozens of casualties, with at least 18 soldiers and 31 militants reported killed, and more than 70 others injured. It was the largest single loss of life for the Philippine Army since the beginning of the year, and came just a day after the group had released an Italian hostage.
This article contains a timeline of events from January 2016 to December 2016 related to the IS-linked Abu Sayyaf. This article contains information about the events committed by or on behalf of the Abu Sayyaf, as well as events performed by groups who oppose them.
The following is a list of attacks which have been carried out by Abu Sayyaf, a militant group based in and around Jolo and Basilan islands in the southwestern part of the Philippines, where for more than four decades, Moro groups have been engaged in an insurgency for an independent province in the country.
The Maute group, also known as the Islamic State of Lanao, was a radical Islamist group composed of former Moro Islamic Liberation Front guerrillas and foreign fighters led by Omar Maute, the alleged founder of a Dawlah Islamiya, or Islamic state, based in Lanao del Sur, Philippines. The group, which a Philippine Army brigade commander characterized as terrorist, had been conducting a protection racket in the remote settlements of Butig, Lanao del Sur. This group follows the Wahhabi ideology and uses the book of Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab called Kitab at-Tawhid in indoctrinating its followers. It had clashed on several occasions with Armed Forces of the Philippines troops, the most significant of which began in May 2017 and culminated in the siege of Marawi.
The 2017 Bohol clashes were armed conflicts that took place in April and May 2017 between Philippine security forces and Moro ISIL-affiliated militants led by members of the Abu Sayyaf in Inabanga, Bohol, Philippines. Three Philippine Army soldiers, a policeman, four terrorists and two civilians were killed during the initial firefight. Subsequent firefights between the remaining militants and security forces resulted in the deaths of all the Abu Sayyaf insurgents. A ranking officer of the Philippine National Police linked to Abu Sayyaf attempted to rescue some of the insurgents but was arrested.
The siege of Marawi, also known as the Marawi crisis and the Battle of Marawi, was a five-month-long armed conflict in Marawi, Philippines, that started on May 23, 2017, between Philippine government security forces against militants affiliated with the Islamic State (IS), including the Maute and Abu Sayyaf Salafi jihadist groups. The battle also became the longest urban battle in the modern history of the Philippines.
The Summer 2016Sulu and Basilan clashes were armed conflicts that took place in two battlefronts on the southern islands of Mindanao, Philippines from 21 June to 12 July.
The Philippines is one of the state opponents of the militant group, Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), more commonly referred to by the local media as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
This is a chronology of the Moro conflict, an ongoing armed conflict in the southern Philippines between jihadist groups such as the Abu Sayyaf Group, the Maute Group, Jemaah Islamiyah, and Islamic State affiliates, mainstream separatist groups such as the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) and the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF), and the Philippine Government since 1971. Much of the fighting has been concentrated on the island of Mindanao and the Sulu archipelago, with spillover incidents and attacks occurring in the Philippine capital Manila and neighboring countries such as Malaysia.
On July 31, 2018, a bomb exploded in the town of Lamitan in Basilan, Philippines.
In the morning of January 27, 2019, two bombs exploded at the Roman Catholic Cathedral of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Jolo, Sulu, Philippines. Twenty people were killed and 102 others injured. The bombings took place a week after the autonomy plebiscite held on January 21 for the creation of Bangsamoro. It is believed that the Abu Sayyaf carried out the attacks, and the Islamic State claimed responsibility. President Rodrigo Duterte responded by issuing an "all-out war" directive against the Abu Sayyaf. The bombings were widely condemned by other countries and organizations.
The 2020 Jolo bombings occurred on August 24, 2020, when insurgents alleged to be jihadists from the Abu Sayyaf group detonated two bombs in Jolo, Sulu, Philippines, killing 14 people and wounding 75 others. The first occurred as Philippine Army personnel were assisting in carrying out COVID-19 humanitarian efforts. The second, a suicide bombing, was carried out near the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Cathedral.
Amin Bacu or Amin Baco is the ISIS Southeast Asia leader who replaced Isnilon Hapilon after he was killed and an expert bomb maker. He also took part on the Mamasapano massacre with Marwan and bombed Basilan and Sulu.
Moro National Liberation Front 
Abu Sayyaf