Netherlands ? A Philippine communist leader accused of commanding a rebel uprising from exile for more than 20 years was arrested by Dutch police Tuesday on suspicion of ordering the murder of two former allies in his home country, prosecutors said.

Jose Maria Sison, founder of the Communist Party of the Philippines and its armed wing, the New People’s Army, was picked up in the central Dutch city of Utrecht, authorities said.

He was accused of ordering the killings in 2003 and 2004 of Romulo Kintanar and Arturo Tabara, who were gunned down in the Philippines on Sison’s command, said a statement the Public Prosecutor’s Office.

Spokesman Wim de Bruin said Sison, 68, will be put on trial in the Netherlands, not the Philippines.

“There is no extradition request,” De Bruin said. “These are crimes that were committed in the Netherlands. Ordering murders is a crime according to Dutch law.”

Philippines President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo hailed the arrest as “a giant step toward peace. A victory for justice and the rule of law.”