2 attack choppers bomb Abu Sayyaf lair in Basilan, 3 govt troopers wounded in ground offensives

From InterAksyon (Feb 15): 2 attack choppers bomb Abu Sayyaf lair in Basilan, 3 govt troopers wounded in ground offensives

The military, together with the support of local government officials, has launched an “all-out offensive” against the kidnap and terror group Abu Sayyaf in its lair in Basilan, firing from two attack helicopters.

The mission carried out by Task Force Zambasulta (which stands for Zamboanga Penisula, Basilan, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi) also had ground offensives starting at 5:45 a.m. Sunday.

A sketchy report from Zambasulta commander Rear Admiral Reynaldo Yoma said two MG520 attack helicopters are currently bombarding with rockets and releasing 50-caliber fires at the bandit group’s locations in Barangay Kuhon, Albarka, Basilan.

Yoma said the ground offensives of the 104th Infantry Brigade and Joint Task Group Basilan initially engaged the group of ASG leader Basir Kasaran alias Basir.

Kasaran has less than 50 armed men.

Another ASG group which is much bigger than Basir’s, the group of Furuji Indama and Nurhasan Jamiri, are also on the run but are closely being pursued by a much bigger number of government troops.

Yoma said three government troopers have been wounded in the firefight.

“Trails of bloods on the ground are everywhere from ASG positions vacated by them after the initial contact. They are on the run but our troops relentlessly pursuing them now,” he said.

The Naval Forces Western Mindanao Command (Navfor-Westmincom), which Yoma also commands, has been blocking all exit and entry points of Basilan to intercept bandits who might be escaping to nearby islands.

Yoma said the ongoing offensive is a result of the persistent efforts of the Task Force Kasanyangan, an inter-agency task force organized by the Office of the Governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), Office of the Provincial Governor of Basilan, Basilan Police Provincial Office, and other stakeholders.

“The purpose of the task force is to come up with a whole-of-nation approach supported by various agencies of the government and civil society groups to address the prevailing insurgency problem and revive governance in the Municipality of Albarka, a renowned ASG stronghold,” Yoma said.

Abu Sayyaf, which is engaged in kidnap-for-ransom and other banditry acts, has been active since the early 1990s.

It is a small but violent Islamist militant group which operates in southern Philippines.

http://www.interaksyon.com/article/105103/2-attack-choppers-bomb-abu-sayyaf-lair-in-basilan-3-govt-troopers-wounded-in-ground-offensives