MAGUINDANAO, Philippines – Government troops foiled an attempt by armed men to take over a military detachment in Mamasapano and hoist the black flag of the Islamic State as a sign of support for the terrorist group.
Troops clashed with the gunmen, described by local officials as a “mysterious gang” linked to the Maute group and Abu Sayyaf, leaving four people dead, including an Army soldier.
Villagers identified the fatalities as Samir Bantuas, Bona Samsudin and Guiapar Angkay, whose bodies were dragged away by their companions.
The dead trooper was identified as Army Cpl. Samsudin Mohammad.
Local residents said a gunman named Tantung, who was wounded during the clashes on Sunday, died the next day.
Local officials said the group was led by an Indonesian whose plan was to capture the detachment of the Army’s 40th Infantry Battalion in Barangay Tukanalipao, Mamasapano.
The two factions of the outlawed Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters denied involvement in the clashes, saying a “third group” could have carried out the attack.
Officials of the municipal peace and order council in Maguindanao urged authorities to investigate the incident, convinced that a “mysterious gang” linked to the Maute and Abu Sayyaf, now grouped as the Dawlah Islamiya, was behind the attack.
“Their plan was to take over the detachment manned by a platoon of soldiers belonging to the 40th IB and plant their flag there, to be captured on video that would be used for a propaganda hype amid the crisis in Marawi City,” a community elder said.
A local official said he learned of the plot that the militants were to upload a video of the attempt on Facebook to show the presence of Dawlah Islamiya forces in Maguindanao.
“That is something local executives in Maguindanao will never allow to happen. Local officials and their followers will do everything to stop that,” the mayor said.