For six days starting Friday two weeks ago, troopers of the Philippine Army’s 61st Division Reconnaisance said they were engaged in a series of fierce fights in Maguindanao with armed men they believed to be Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF). The fighting started in Datu Salibo town and moved on to Datu Saudi Ampatuan.
A military source was quoted as saying the armed men they believed to be BIFF turned out to be Moro Islamic Liberation Force (MILF). But an MILF spokesman, in a published report, blamed the soldiers for not coordinating with the MILF in their pursuit of the BIFF into an MILF area.
There seems to be an intelligence gap in the ongoing military operations. In Mindanao today, a peace agreement is supposed to be in force between the Philippine government and the MILF. The Army troopers were thus fighting BIFF men; they were simply surprised to find that in the course of the fighting, the enemy forces were now MILF.
Had the troopers pursuing the BIFF entered an area of the MILF who then proceeded to shoot back? Or, as one military source feared, was the enemy force really a composite of both groups?
This confusion recalls the Mamasapano battle of January, 2015, in which the Special Action Force commandos found themselves cornered by armed men, some of whom were MILF, some were BIFF, and still others were members of private armed groups.
Now that Congress has adjourned without approving the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) which would have created a Bangsamoro Autonomous Region, there are fears of a resurgence of fighting in the area. The MILF has vowed to carry on its efforts for peace, but, as seen in the fighting last week in Datu Salibo and Datu Saudi Ampatuan, fighting goes on amid great confusion in the military as to who the enemy is.
There is an urgent need for new efforts to reach out to the MILF and perhaps draw up a new agreement, minus the provisions that caused senators to reject it. An effort should be made to reach out to the BIFF, perhaps with the help of the MILF, for the two groups seem to be operating quite well with each other.
http://www.tempo.com.ph/2016/02/15/opinion/editorial/milf-or-biff-confusion-marks-new-maguindanao-fighting/
A military source was quoted as saying the armed men they believed to be BIFF turned out to be Moro Islamic Liberation Force (MILF). But an MILF spokesman, in a published report, blamed the soldiers for not coordinating with the MILF in their pursuit of the BIFF into an MILF area.
There seems to be an intelligence gap in the ongoing military operations. In Mindanao today, a peace agreement is supposed to be in force between the Philippine government and the MILF. The Army troopers were thus fighting BIFF men; they were simply surprised to find that in the course of the fighting, the enemy forces were now MILF.
Had the troopers pursuing the BIFF entered an area of the MILF who then proceeded to shoot back? Or, as one military source feared, was the enemy force really a composite of both groups?
This confusion recalls the Mamasapano battle of January, 2015, in which the Special Action Force commandos found themselves cornered by armed men, some of whom were MILF, some were BIFF, and still others were members of private armed groups.
Now that Congress has adjourned without approving the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) which would have created a Bangsamoro Autonomous Region, there are fears of a resurgence of fighting in the area. The MILF has vowed to carry on its efforts for peace, but, as seen in the fighting last week in Datu Salibo and Datu Saudi Ampatuan, fighting goes on amid great confusion in the military as to who the enemy is.
There is an urgent need for new efforts to reach out to the MILF and perhaps draw up a new agreement, minus the provisions that caused senators to reject it. An effort should be made to reach out to the BIFF, perhaps with the help of the MILF, for the two groups seem to be operating quite well with each other.
http://www.tempo.com.ph/2016/02/15/opinion/editorial/milf-or-biff-confusion-marks-new-maguindanao-fighting/
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