Troops clash with bandits, camp seized in Zamboanga town

From the Mindanao Examiner (Jun 7): Troops clash with bandits, camp seized in Zamboanga town

Government troops captured an encampment of suspected bandits following a fire fight in the town of Sibuco in Zamboanga del Norte province in southern Philippines, police said Tuesday.

Superintendent Rogelio Alabata, a regional police spokesman, said they have alerted their forces in the town after troops clashed with bandits who attacked soldiers guarding a government bridge project in Puliran village.

Alabata said there were no reports of casualties in the Monday’s fighting, but soldiers from the army had seized the bandit’s encampment about 500 meters from the construction site.

He said soldiers from the 42^nd Infantry Battalion recovered bullet shells from the camp, which was quickly abandoned by bandits led by Jamaruddin Alih.

Police said armed groups have been extorting money from construction companies in the province. It was not immediately known if the armed men were affiliated with other rebel groups actively operating in the Zamboanga Peninsula.

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