Special Forces land to begin Philippine training mission

TABIAWAN ARMY BASE, Philippines -- U.S. Army attack helicopters whipped up dust clouds and blew the tops off coconut trees as 30 U.S. Special Forces troops arrived on an island in the southern Philippines to train soldiers battling Muslim extremists.

The start of the training mission opens a new front in the U.S. war against terrorism and marks the largest American deployment in the campaign after Afghanistan. U.S. officials say the Abu Sayyaf rebels have been linked to al-Qaida.

The Special Forces troops who arrived at Tabiawan army base, the first of 160 due on Basilan in the coming days, were to head for other Philippine military camps on the rugged island where the government has been tracking the guerrillas for months, sometimes engaging in combat.

The U.S. forces will train the Philippine army in night fighting, night flying and psychological operations. They may travel into combat zones but are permitted to fire only in self-defense.

"We will take all measures to defend ourselves," said U.S. Special Forces Lt. Col. David Maxwell, who arrived with his men Sunday at the base, a jumble of bamboo huts, crowing roosters and grazing goats amid mahogany and coconut trees.

The troops flew in from the Philippine military's Southern Command headquarters across a strait from Basilan in Zamboanga, where more than 250 American military support personnel are staying for the six-month maneuvers called Balikatan, or "shoulder to shoulder."

160 Special Forces troops

The U.S. contingent is to grow to its full size of 660 personnel, including the 160 Special Forces troops, in the coming weeks.

Shortly after landing, some U.S. soldiers strung up hammocks and napped as others began installing equipment and more attended a briefing in a grass-roofed hut.