2 killed as government troops repulse joint attack by Abu, MILF and Misuari boys

ZAMBOANGA CITY — Two suspected bandits were killed while four others, including two soldiers, were wounded in an attack by combined forces of the Abu Sayyaf and separatist rebels on an Army detachment in Lamitan, Basilan early yesterday.

The military said combined forces of the Abu Sayyaf, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the Misuari Breakaway Group (MBG) tried to overrun an Army post but were repulsed by superior tactics employed by the soldiers.

Basilan military commander Col. Bonifacio Ramos said that although they were outnumbered, the soldiers quickly maneuvered and retaliated, killing two bandits and wounding two others.

Ramos stressed the soldiers that encountered the rebels were all equipped with bulletproof vests and trained by the US Special Forces during the Balikatan 02-1 last year.

"The troops who were all trained during the past Balikatan moved in precision and outclassed the attacking rebels in close quarter combat," Ramos said.

Ramos said the troops believed there could be more rebels wounded in the encounter but only two were positively monitored.

The military said the slain bandits were followers of Commander Mingkong of the Abu Sayyaf.

Reports reaching Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City identified the two wounded soldiers as Cpl. Epifanio Tindoc and Pfc. Madzpar Jawari.

The rebels have fled toward the Tuburan area hastily leaving a stockpile of ammunition, the military said.

Ramos said they are now assessing what could be the motive of the recent attacks and the tactical alliance of the Abu Sayyaf, MILF and the MBG.

He admitted, however, that they could not ascertain if the attack was carried out "to test the mettle of the military in Basilan."

The Abu Sayyaf were virtually driven away from Basilan following the conduct of the RP-US Balikatan 02-1 joint war exercises last year.

The bandit group managed to regroup in Sulu where another joint war exercises, Balikatan 03-1, were supposed to be conducted in the province this year.

Balikatan 03-1 had been hounded by controversy after US officials pushed for allowing American soldiers to join in actual combat, which is against the Constitution.

It was widely expected that the planned US-Philippine military operation in Jolo would neutralize the Abu Sayyaf who have been kidnapping Christians and foreigners for decades, holding them hostage in the island’s jungles.

The Abu Sayyaf has been linked by both Washington and Manila to the al-Qaeda network of terror mastermind Osama bin Laden. The bandit group is still holding three Indonesian seamen and four Filipina Christian preachers in the jungles of Jolo.

After the bandit group left Basilan, residents in the island province experienced peace and stability for several months now, Ramos said.

"(But) the troops continue to hunt down the (Abu Sayyaf) leaders up to the last man," he added.

Meanwhile, government troops and MILF rebels clashed anew in the provinces of Sarangani and North Cotabato, leaving an Army trooper killed in one of the encounters.

Reports reaching Camp Aguinaldo said the first encounter occurred Saturday in Gian, Sarangani province, where troops of the 7th Special Forces Battalion and militiamen encountered a band of MILF rebels in Barangay Burlas.

The name of the dead trooper was not immediately known.

Reports also said 15 MILF rebels led by a certain Ulyak Guali torched 12 houses in Sitio Sulok, Barangay Dunguan, Aleosan town in North Cotabato.

The rebels immediately fled after sensing the approach of Army reinforcements. – With Mike Frialde