Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Army, MILF intensifies manhunt vs. BIFF in Maguindanao

From the Philippine News Agency (Oct 28, 2019): Army, MILF intensifies manhunt vs. BIFF in Maguindanao



CASUALTIES. Civilians haul the remains of seven Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) members killed in clashes with Islamic State-inspired Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters in Shariff Saydona Mustapha, Maguindanao on Oct. 5, 2019. A joint Army-MILF operation is ongoing against the BIFF in the province on efforts to finish off the terror elements in the area soonest. (Photo courtesy of MILF)

Joint military and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) forces have intensified their operation against members of the Islamic State-linked Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters in Maguindanao, an official said.

This came after BIFF radicals killed in an ambush seven MILF members during clashes in the marshy area of Barangay Dasawao 4, Shariff Saydona Mustapha, Maguindanao province
earlier this month, said Major Gen. Diosdado Carreon, the Army's 6th Infantry Division commander.

“The particular incident led to the series of intermittent clashes up to now between the MILF and BIFF in Shariff Saydona Mustapha,”
There is no letup against our operation against the terrorists,” Carreon said.

George Kasim, alias “Commander George” of the MILF national guard division
, said the manhunt is ongoing in partnership with the Army in Maguindanao’s second district where the BIFF operates in the so-called SPMS box”, which stands for the Shariff Aguak-Pagatin-Mamasapano-Salibo conflict zone.


“We know where they are and we will give justice to our fallen comrades,” Kasim said in a separate interview Monday. He said the remains of the MILF fighters, all belonging to MILF national guard division and Task Force Ittihad (peacekeeping), were brutally killed, with one of them beheaded, by the BIFF extremists.

Kasim said that more members of the MILF Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces (BIAF), who were not yet decommissioned, were sent to the SPMS box to join the manhunt.

Kasim said the BIFF faction they are hunting down belongs to the group of Abu Toraife that pledged allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.

The Army is helping the MILF run after the lawless elements as provided for in the government-MILF ceasefire agreement.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1084390

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