MANILA, Oct 9: Fugitive Muslim leader Nur Misuari has been charged with rebellion following deadly attacks by hundreds of his armed followers on a southern Philippine city, the justice minister said on Wednesday.

A court in the southern city of Zamboanga has issued an arrest warrant for Misuari and three of his commanders for the siege of the city that began on September 9, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima told reporters.

At least 244 people were killed in the three weeks of fighting that followed, with the government alleging that Misuari masterminded the operation even though he was not physically present.

“I’m convinced that we have sufficient and strong evidence this time around to prosecute successfully Nur Misuari,” de Lima said.

Hundreds of Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) fighters occupied parts of Zamboanga for three weeks, taking scores of civilian hostages and battling military and police in a bid to disrupt government peace talks with a rival Muslim rebel group. The MNLF were eventually driven out and their hostages freed but more than 116,000 people were forced to flee their homes and about 10,000 houses were razed. The violence was the country’s worst since President Benigno Aquino took office in 2010. Although the government acknowledges Misuari was not among the attackers, it says it has proof he ordered the operation.—AFP