The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) made the commitment during a meeting with Saif Al Islam Gaddafi, eldest son of Libyan leader Moamer Gaddafi.

Saif Al Islam arrived in Manila on Wednesday to meet with leaders of the MILF and the MNLF to find ways to hasten peace and development in the southern region of Mindanao, home to the country's Muslim minority.

MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu, who was one of those who attended the meeting in a posh hotel in the financial district of Makati, said there was no agreement to merge the two forces into one group.

'We agreed to resolve the conflict not beyond September 2008 in accordance with a roadmap to be drawn later by th and the MNLF, with support from Saif Al Islam Gaddafi and other Muslim countries,' he said.

The MNLF signed a peace agreement with the government in 1996, but the group has been complaining that key provisions of the pact, including the development of conflict areas, were not implemented.

The MILF, which broke away with the MNLF in 1978, is engaged in its own peace negotiations with the government.

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo met with Saif Al Islam on Thursday and hailed Libya's continued support for the search of peace in Mindanao.


Agencies