Death toll in Sulu clashes climbs to 32 ASG

From CNN Philippines (Sep 8): Death toll in Sulu clashes climbs to 32 ASG



(File photo) The Armed Forces of the Philippines has deployed 7,000 troops to Sulu in its campaign to put an end to the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG).

Two more Abu Sayyaf members were killed Tuesday afternoon as government troops stepped up efforts to go after the bandit group in Sulu, the military's Western Mindanao Command (Wesmincom) said Wednesday.

This brings the death toll to 32 on the side of the bandits since August 26, after President Rodrigo Duterte ordered the armed forces to "search and destroy" the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG). A furious Duterte issued the directive after the group beheaded an 18-year-old hostage in Jolo.



Duterte: Abu Sayyaf can be crushed in a week

The Wesmincom said combined troops of the 35th and 21st Infantry Battalions engaged about 30 ASG members in the mountainous areas of Patikul, Sulu on Tuesday.

The firefight lasted for half an hour.

An undetermined number of ASG members were also wounded, but the government troops suffered no casualty, according to the Wesmincom.

The ASG came from an earlier firefight that same day day with soldiers of the 45th Infantry Battalion.

"Reports gathered from civilians in the vicinity confirmed two ASG killed being carried by their companions for burial," the Wesmincom said in a statement.

The slain ASG were led by known subleaders Jamiri Jaong Jawhari and Basaron Arok, it added.

"There will be no letup in the effort to rescue the remaining hostages," BGen. Arnel dela Vega, Commander of Joint Task Force Sulu, said in a statement. "Our priority is the safe rescue of the victims and protection of local communities in Sulu against terrorists and criminal elements."

Armed Forces of the Philippines spokesman BGen. Resituto Padilla earlier said the "high-value" kidnap victims of the Abu Sayyaf are held by its bigger sub-groups, like the team led by Radullan Sahiron.

Sahiron is among the most wanted terrorists of the United States' Federal Bureau of Investigation, with a $1 million bounty on his head.

His group killed 15 soldiers in a bloody clash on August 29, as the country commemorated Heroes' Day.

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Duterte repeatedly said he is determined to dismantle the Abu Sayyaf.

The AFP has deployed 7,000 troops in Sulu, the biggest force tapped against the ASG since it was formed in the early 1990s.

http://cnnphilippines.com/regional/2016/09/08/Sulu-clashes-Abu-Sayyaf.html