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Abu Sayyaf death toll rises to 13 as military pursues 'no let-up' operations

April 11, 2016 | 3:33am

ZAMBOANGA CITY - The death toll on the side of the Abu Sayyaf increased to 13 as the military vowed a ‘no let-up’ operation in Basilan against the group.

Maj. Filemon Tan Jr., Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom) spokesman, said troops from the 4th Special Forces Battalion and 3rd Scout Ranger Battalion encountered the fleeing Abu Sayyaf faction under Radullan Sahiron and Furuji Indama.

According to the military, there's no increase in the number of casualties on the government side following the latest encounter Sunday morning against members of the terror group in Tipo-Tipo town.

He said the encounter occurred around 8 a.m. outside the village of Baguindan, the same area as the 10-hour bloody encounter last Saturday that left 18 soldiers killed and 56 others wounded. At least five Abu Sayyaf members were killed while 20 others were wounded that same day.

Abu Sayyaf leader among wounded

Meanwhile, Sunday's encounter led to the death of four while more than six got wounded among the Abu Sayyaf, Tan said. The number rose on Monday, when four of the 20 wounded Abu Sayyaf members in Saturday’s encounter died, bringing the total to 13.

“We are on pursuit operation and our troops engaged again. We have to confirm the reports on the ground that 4 other Abu Sayyaf members were killed,” Tan said.

Among those wounded in the Sunday encounter was Abu Sayyaf leader Indama, who was critically hit by the military attack.

The military official also clarified that the name of Hapilon son who was killed last Saturday was Amah and not Ubaida as earlier reported.

He added that Ubaida Jannatul is a relative of Abu Sayyaf leader Radzmil Jannatul.

Tan said Westmincom chief Lt. Gen. Mayoralgo dela Cruz visited the troops on the ground in Basilan to ensure the continuous operation.

“The operation is continuous and there is no let-up in going after the Abu Sayyaf group,” Tan said.

He said they already have deployed a big number of forces to ensure the "no let-up operation" against the group of Hapilon and Indama.

Bomb training preempted

Meanwhile, the military said the neutralization of Moroccan terrorist Mohammad Khattab also preempted the possibility of bombing attacks and the transfer of bombing techniques to the Abu Sayyaf.

Khattab, a bomb expert and jihadist, was killed during the Saturday encounter. He was one of the two foreign militants being hunted down in Basilan. His other companion Malaysian bomb expert Mohammad Najib Hussein alias Abu Anas was killed during a week-long offensive last December 15 in Al-Barka town.

“We preempted [the] possibility of [a] bombing attack because we neutralize Mohammad Khattab. He could no longer pass on his terroristic trade craft,” Tan said.

Tan said they cannot say whether Khattaf and Hapilon, both espousing the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), are acknowledged members of the international terrorist group ISIS.

“Many people are riding on the hype of ISIS worldwide. This does not necessarily mean that if these people [are] trying to project ISIS, the ISIS will acknowledge them,” Tan added when asked if Khattab belonged to the ISIS group.