Abu Sayyaf militants in Southern Philippines. Image via YouTube.
DESPITE having lost a good number of its members to the Duterte administration’s armed offensive in Sulu, the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) has shown no signs of ceasefire, even telling Philippine troops they are ready for more battles ahead.
According to ABS-CBN, the Philippine Armed Forces is beefing up its numbers in southern Philippines and at last count yesterday, is estimated to have sent some 7,500 soldiers to fight the ASG.
Undeterred, the militant group issued a statement yesterday warning the troops to get prepared for attacks they said would begin today.
The report added that ground battles that have been raging on since last week came to a silent stop yesterday, with no reported clashes between the military and members of the terrorist network.
“Silent guns, however, don’t always mean the war is over,” ABS-CBN wrote.
SEE ALSO: 15 Philippine soldiers killed in bloody standoff with Abu Sayyaf
It quoted Brigadier Gen. Arnel dela Vega, commander of Joint Task Force Sulu, as saying that the fight must go on, although it was not easy for his men to push on after losing 15 brothers-in-arms during recent battles.
Reports on Tuesday said 15 soldiers were killed and five others wounded during fierce fighting on Monday. The clash also reportedly killed at least two militants in the Sulu province’s mountainous Patikul town, where the ASG has detained many of its kidnapped victims.
The Monday battle was said to be the largest single-day combat loss under President Rodrigo Duterte, who ordered government troops to crush the Abu Sayyaf militants last week after they beheaded a kidnapped villager whose family was too poor to pay a ransom.
SEE ALSO: Philippines army kills 11 Abu Sayyaf members on Duterte’s order
Officials said Monday’s battle setback came after troops killed about 21 Abu Sayyaf gunmen, including an influential commander, on Friday and Saturday in assaults that followed the beheading.
According to GMA News, the army’s chief of Public Affairs Office, Marine Col. Edgard Arevalo, said the clash occurred at 4:30 p.m. in which troops from the Philippine Army’s 35th Infantry Battalion and 21st Infantry Battalion faced “more or less 120 heavily armed terrorists”.
The casualty numbers on the militants’ side, he said, had yet to be confirmed.
SEE ALSO: Abu Sayyaf denies commander among 12 killed by Philippine army
According to the Philippine Star, the militants were led by Abu Sayyaf commander Radulan Sahiron, a one-armed fighter on the Philippines and the US’ wanted list for his role in bombings, kidnappings and other acts.
The Abu Sayyaf has been blacklisted as a terrorist organization by the U.S. and the Philippines.
https://asiancorrespondent.com/2016/09/abu-sayyaf-says-ready-dutertes-soldiers/
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