THE Armed Forces yesterday officially ended operations against the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters after capturing four rebel camps and a bomb factory in Shariff Saydona Mustapha town in Maguindanao over the weekend.
Clashes between government forces and the BIFF men erupted in Sultan sa Barongis town in Maguindanao on January 26 when policemen and soldiers were to serve arrest warrants against BIFF men involved in kidnapping and other crimes.
Lt. Col. Ramon Zagala, AFP public information office chief, said “Operation Darkhorse,” the campaign against the BIFF rebels, was supposed to end Thursday last week but was extended up to yesterday.
The police, supported by the military, would still serve the warrants of arrest on BIFF personalities including its founder, Ameril Umbra Kato, a former commander of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.
Zagala said members of the BIFF split into small groups after the operations.
But before operation was formally terminated, an improvised explosive device planted by the BIFF went off in Datu Saudi Ampatuan, Maguindanao, injuring 10, including a reporter of TV5 and his cameraman.
Zagala said the three-day extension was crucial in applying more pressure on the BIFF as it allowed the military to press further into areas where the rebels were entrenched. It also prevented a possible spillover of hostilities by containing the enemies in the area.
“Prior to the approval of the extension, the Army’s 601st Brigade reported that there have been sporadic clashes because the BIFF splintered into smaller groups. There were also many wounded among the BIFF’s ranks and these men were encouraged to coordinate with local officials, barangay officials to have proper medical attention as humanitarian consideration because they are fellow Filipinos,” Zagala said.
Zagala said the days of fighting between the government security forces and the BIFF affected 9,465 families (about 35,300 individuals) from the towns of Shariff Saydona, Rajah Buayan, Datu Piang, all in Maguindanao, and in Pikit, North Cotabato.
He said displaced civilians can now return to their homes except in communities which were heavily damaged due to the fighting and which have to be rehabilitated.
Zagala said photos recovered by government troops from a BIFF camp in Barangay Damablas, Datu Piang, Maguindanao confirmed reports the group employed “child soldiers.”
The Army’s 6th Infantry Division said at least three child soldiers aged 15 to 16 were killed in the clashes in Maguindanao.
Operation Darkhorse led to the killing of 52 BIFF rebels and the wounding of 49 others. Several firearms and explosives were also recovered from the days of operations.
On the government side, one soldier was killed while 20 others were wounded. Eight civilians caught in the crossfire are being treated in various health facilities in the area.
INVITE ALL
Rep. Rodolfo Biazon advised President Aquino to invite the BIFF and two factions of the Moro National Liberation Front to join the Transition Commission in crafting the proposed Bangsamoro basic law which will pave the way for the creation of a Bangsamoro region.
“Para mabuo yong panukalang batas na ‘yon, ay isama sa kunsultasyon ang lahat, pati na yong MNLF lalo na yong pinamumunuan ni Muslimin Sema. Ngayon, invitations can also be extended to the Misuari faction,” he said.
Biazon, chair of the House committee on national defense and a former AFP chief, even went as far as proposing that the warrants for arrest of Nur Misuari and wanted BIFF rebels be suspended to allow them to participate in the peace process.
Misuari, founding chair of the MNLF, is now head of one several factions in the group. His followers attacked several villages in Zamboanga City last September. He is against the forging of a peace agreement between the government and the MILF. The MNLF forged a peace pact with government in 1996.
Misuari is wanted for the 2013 Zamboanga siege.
Muslimin Sema, former vice mayor of Cotabato City, heads another faction in the MNLF.
Biazon said other BIFF and MNLF representatives who do not have arrest warrants can also be asked to join the deliberations.
Miriam Coronel-Ferrer, chair of the government panel negotiating with the MILF, has invited the BIFF to a dialogue to air their sentiments.
The Transition Commission which is tasked to draft the Bangsamoro basic law is expected to submit it to Congress by May this year. Its 15 members were appointed by Aquino last year. The government hopes for the enactment of the law by 2015, and holding of a plebiscite soon afterwards.
Biazon said when he was a senator in 1992, he proposed to then President Ramos that he be allowed to dialogue with the Reform the Armed Forces Movement and the communist group.
Deputy presidential spokeswoman Abigail Valte asked the BIFF to give peace a chance.
She said many areas in Mindanao are suffering because of the fighting between government troops and the BIFF.
http://malaya.com.ph/business-news/news/gov%E2%80%99t-troops-rout-biff-%E2%80%98operation-darkhorse%E2%80%99-captures-four-rebel-camps-dismantles
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