In the Philippines, at least three Al Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf militants were killed and several others wounded today in clashes withpolice commandos in the south of the country. National police spokesman Agrimero Cruz said Special Action Force commandos caught up with an Abu Sayyaf unit believed to be aiding foreign militants from the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) group on Jolo island triggering the fighting. He said intelligence reports suggested that the Abu Sayyaf gunmen were protecting Marwan, a Malaysian-born member of the JI believed to be responsible for honing the Abu Sayyaf's bombing techniques. The Abu Sayyaf is a small gang of Islamic militants blamed for the country's worst terrorist attacks, including a ferry bombing that left over 100 dead in Manila Bay in 2004. The group was also blamed for last year's ambush on a police convoy in which the island's police chief and several others died.