IED blast kills village chief, wounds 2 others in Maguindanao Sur

From the Manila Times (Aug 18, 2023): IED blast kills village chief, wounds 2 others in Maguindanao Sur (By Franz R. Sumangil)

A VILLAGE captain in Maguindanao del Sur was killed while a village councilor was injured when unidentified men set off an improvised explosive device (IED) in Shariff Saydona Mustapha town.

Rex Torino, municipal information officer of nearby Datu Salibo town, said Jun "Datu Manot" Silongan, chairman of Penditen village in Datu Salibo, died instantly after the blast that happened on Wednesday morning in Ganta village, Shariff Saydona town.

Brig. Gen. Oriel Pangcog, commander of the Army's 601st Infantry Brigade, confirmed that one barangay (village) captain was killed and a village councilor injured in their area in "SPMS box."

The "SPMS-box" is a military term referring to the contiguous towns of Shariff Aguak, Pagatin (Datu Saudi Ampatuan town), Mamasapano and Shariff Saydona, where several Moro armed groups are found.

These include the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, Moro National Liberation Front, Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) Dawlah Islamiyah (DI-ISIS) and private armed groups.

Torino said Silongan was walking with other village officials from the barangay hall of Barangay Ganta when an explosion was heard.

He added that Silongan died from shrapnel injuries to different parts of the body.

Also injured was Penditen councilor Salik Datua who lost a leg in the blast, according to a report from a hospital in Midsayap, North Cotabato.

Another injured victim was an unidentified civilian.

The village captain is the brother of Datu Salibo town councilor Demson Silongan, who was murdered on April 17 while he was heading to the Sangguniang Bayan session hall.

Police and military bomb experts are investigating the latest incident.

https://www.manilatimes.net/2023/08/18/regions/ied-blast-kills-village-chief-wounds-2-others-in-maguindanao-sur/1905882