Sulu, Basilan clashes: 13 bandits, 2 soldiers dead; 17 troops wounded

From the Business Mirror (Dec 16): Sulu, Basilan clashes: 13 bandits, 2 soldiers dead; 17 troops wounded

AT least 13 bandits and two soldiers were killed in separate clashes in Sulu and Basilan early this week.

Reports said 17 soldiers were wounded in the encounters.

In Basilan 13 bandits were killed when government forces attacked a newly discovered Abu Sayyaf camp on Monday. Reports said 13 bandits and two soldiers were killed in the firefight. Thirteen soldiers were wounded.

In Sulu four soldiers were wounded after a big Abu Sayyaf formation attacked the headquarters of the Army’s 32nd Infantry Battalion (32 IB) on Tuesday night, triggering a firefight that lasted until early morning on Wednesday.

Brig. Gen. Alan Arrojado, commander of the Armed Forces Joint Task Group Sulu, said at least 150 bandits, said to be followers of Abu Sayyaf chieftain Radullan Sahiron, attacked the headquarters of the 32 IB in Patikul at around 8:15 p.m. on Tuesday night.

Government forces resisted the attack, triggering a fierce firefight. Four soldiers were slightly wounded in the attack and ensuing gun battle. During the attack, Joint Task Group Sulu alerted all troops in the province for possible reinforcement and the setting up of checkpoints.

Arrojado said that by around 5 a.m., the 50-strong group of Tistah Hussien that joined the attack has withdrawn from the area, along with the other bandits groups.

Arrojado said military authorities believed the bandits staged the attack to show to the local residents that they still have the forces to mount large-scale operations and to avenge recent setbacks sustained in the previous successive operations by the 32 IB.

Hussien is the son of bandit sub-leader Juhurim Hussien, who was killed during an encounter with soldiers early this year.

“Hussien [is the] son of the late subleader Juhurim Hussien, who died during the encounter on March 4, 2015, against the troops of 32 IB. Accordingly, said group merged with other subgroups prior to the attack that constitutes more or less 150, wherein the majority are relatives of the owners of the firearms recovered by 32 IB in November 2015,” Arrojado quoted a report.

The harassment happened as joint teams of the Scout Rangers, Special Forces and Marine Special Operations Group, supported by armored vehicles, attacked a newly discovered camp of the Abu Sayyaf in Al Barka, Basilan.

During the initial fighting, which began on Monday, two soldiers were killed, while 10 others were also wounded.

Maj. Filemon Tan, spokesman of the Armed Forces Western Mindanao Command, however said at least 13 bandits were also killed.

“This is a big operation, just wait for its results,” Tan said of the ongoing offensive, which has already spread into other civilian-populated barangays, including Makalang.

http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/sulu-basilan-clashes-13-bandits-2-soldiers-dead-17-troops-wounded/