AFP orders sustained campaign vs Abus

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines – Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief Gen. Gregorio Pio Catapang Jr. ordered a sustained campaign against the Abu Sayyaf as he personally assessed the military offensive in Sulu.

The military launched the offensive Tuesday last week and encountered more than 300 Abu Sayyaf militants led by Radulan Sahiron and Hatib Hajan Sawadjaan in the mountains of Patikul town.

The series of encounters left 24 Abu Sayyaf killed and scores wounded while government forces had two dead and 26 others wounded.

Catapang said the government forces were able to reduce the number of militants to 246 following the sustained offensive. He said the Abu Sayyaf is now on the run while taking casualties.

However, three soldiers were killed in a roadside bombing in Patikul yesterday.

Armed Forces spokesman Col. Restituto Padilla said the three soldiers were in a convoy of an Army truck and troop carriers when they struck a landmine in Barangay Pansul. Six soldiers were also wounded in the blast.

The military is withholding the identities of the slain soldiers pending notification of their immediate families.

Catapang also revealed the Abu Sayyaf still hold seven hostages, including bird watcher Dutchman Elwold Horn, in the mountains of Patikul.

Horn has been in captivity with Swiss national Lorenzo Vinciguerra since February 2012. Vinciguerra fought his way out and escaped last December in the jungles of Sulu.

Capt. Maria Rowena Muyuela, spokesperson for Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom), said the Abu Sayyaf have been on the run since Saturday, avoiding direct contact.

Muyuela said the Abu Sayyaf splintered into small groups in the effort to slip through military checkpoints.

Catapang also met with Sulu Gov. Abdusakur Tan Jr. to ensure the local government will not be hampered by the ongoing military operation.

Catapang also tasked the troops to assist the local government units in the evacuation of civilians.

“So far there has been no reported displacement of civilians as the operation was concentrated in the mountains and away from the community,” Cabunoc said.

Cabunoc also ordered the sustained offensive against the separatist Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) in Central Mindanao.

This developed as government troops on Tuesday found another abandoned BIFF camp in Datu Saudi town, the second BIFF enclave in Maguindanao the military took over in a span of three days.

Soldiers recovered several gun parts, tripods for .50 caliber machine guns, antennas for two-way radios, ammunition for assorted firearms and documents purportedly detailing plans to bomb public places, passenger vehicles and business establishments in Central Mindanao.

Local officials said the bandits hastily left their hideout in Sitio Tatapan after learning Army units and Marines restored government control over the BIFF’s main bastion in Barangay Dasikil.

Capt. Jo-Ann Petinglay, spokesperson for the Army‘s 6th Infantry Division, declined to reveal what were written on the seized documents.

“These are among the reasons why the military is engaged now in a law enforcement operation against this group,” she said.

Petinglay said the security threats from the BIFF are now being addressed jointly by the military and the Philippine National Police.

“Local government units have also been very supportive. Local officials are helping out against BIFF attacks,” Petinglay said.

Petinglay said the main focus of the law enforcement campaign against the BIFF is to weaken the groups of Tambako and Karialan, known for enforcing Taliban-style justice system in far-flung areas where they operate.

Tambako, whose real name is Mohammad, was said to have launched a BIFF “sub-group” dubbed Saifullah before military units in Maguindanao launched an offensive against him and his followers.

North Cotabato Gov. Emmylou Taliño-Mendoza on Wednesday warned against possible BIFF diversionary attacks.

Mendoza had ordered the North Cotabato provincial police to tighten security in the entire province.

The military, on the other hand, has activated a task force that would assist residents displaced by its offensives against the BIFF in Central Mindanao.

Armed Forces spokesman Padilla said doctors, dentists and aid workers from “Task Force Kalinga” were tasked to provide the needs of evacuees in Maguindanao and Cotabato.

“They will be looking after the plight of the evacuees,” Padilla said.

Padilla said the task force is activated whenever there is a need to provide humanitarian assistance. The task force will work closely with local governments and the police to ensure well-coordinated aid efforts.

More than 8,000 families or about 40,000 persons have been displaced by the sporadic encounters between the military and BIFF rebels in Central Mindanao.

Military officials said operations against the guerillas would continue despite the rising number of evacuees.

“We are staging these offensives because we want to have peace in these areas. If we do not pay attention to the security threats, the problems in these areas will persist,” Padilla said.

Meanwhile, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) reminded all parties involved in the clash to respect human life and dignity and civilian properties.

In a statement, ICRC stressed the need to provide medical attention to all injured or sick people regardless of their religion, ethnic group, gender or political beliefs.

“Civilians are forced to flee out of fear. Displacement, especially when it’s prolonged and repeated, uproots people from their normal lives and causes untold suffering,” said Pascal Mauchle, head of the ICRC’s delegation in the Philippines.

“These families need food, clean water and access to sanitation,” he added.

The ICRC said civilians are still afraid to return to their homes because of uncertainties and the risk of explosive devices.

Army and police bomb experts promptly deactivated last Tuesday an improvised explosive device found by residents in Kabacan town in the third district of North Cotabato.

At least six people were killed while more than 60 others were injured in four bomb attacks by the BIFF in North Cotabato since 2014.

On the other hand, suspected BIFF gunmen shot dead two soldiers at the public market of Buldon, Maguindanao on Tuesday.

Buldon police chief Sr. Insp. Acmad Sarico said Cpl. Nerger Piñero and Pfc. Jamaneel Bulaybulay, both members of Army’s 37th Infantry Battalion, died on the spot from multiple gunshot wounds.

The two soldiers were buying goods at a stall in the Buldon public market when two gunmen approached them from behind and shot them repeatedly.

The gunmen took the M-16 rifle of Piñero before fleeing. – With John Unson, Alexis Romero, Jaime Laude