BEIJING, Aug. 21 (Xinhuanet) -- Al-Qaida-linked extremists in the Philippines have turned to the wildly popular video-sharing website YouTube in an apparent attempt to raise cash and recruits, media reported Tuesday.

    For the first time, two video clips from the Abu Sayyaf group, responsible for some of the worst terror attacks in the Philippines, have been posted on the site.

    Philippine military spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Bartolome Bacarro said the clips were taken from a one-hour video that was distributed throughout the Arabic-speaking jihadist community.

    He said the speakers used Arabic apparently to appeal to wealthy would-be benefactors from the Middle East.

    The armed forces, which is mounting a bloody major offensive against Abu Sayyaf strongholds on the southern islands of Jolo and Basilan, dismissed the YouTube posting as an "act of desperation."

    (Agencies)