One battle at a time So far, so good

Easter came and went without the dreaded scenario of a bomb going off in a crowded church or bus terminal in Metro Manila. There were no images of bloodshed and chaos, of ambulances speeding the dead and the wounded from the scene of destruction, of rescue workers searching through the debris for more bodies and survivors.

The biggest security operation ever mounted in Metro Manila has kept away the enemy, who had vowed to inflict havoc to avenge its comrades who were killed after a prison uprising. Acting on information extracted from captured Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiah militants, police and military placed the metropolis under a security cocoon, installing checkpoints, keeping watch over churches, malls, transport terminals and other likely terrorist targets.