American troops prepare a pack of C4 exp

Patikul, PHILIPPINES: American troops prepare a pack of C4 explosives to be used in destroying caches of recovered Abu Sayyaf rebels' ammunitions in a remote area of Patikul in southern Jolo island, 13 September 2006. Philippine military, backed up by US intelligence, have the al-Qaeda linked militants and the two Bali bombing fugitives surrounded in dense jungle on the island but are meeting strong resistance. Australia's army chief Lieutenant General Peter Leahy secretly visited nearby military base in Zamboanga city 14 September and met regional military chief Major General Eugenio Cedo for an update on the hunt for Umar Patek and Dulmatin from the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) extremist group who are being sheltered by Abu Sayyaf in the jungles of Jolo. Around 5,000 Philippines troops are involved in the operations. AFP PHOTO THERENCE KOH (Photo credit should read THERENCE KOH/AFP via Getty Images)