3 hurt in clash of clans in Maguindanao

MAGUINDANAO, Philippines  ---- Three villagers were wounded as rival Moro families, one of them identified with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, clashed on Wednesday in Barangay Balanaken in Datu Piang town in the province.

Col. Dickson Hermoso, spokesman of the Army’s 6th Infantry Division, said local officials and representatives of the MILF are trying to  resolve the conflict.

The feuding groups are reportedly squabbling for control of strategic patches of lands in the barangay.

“One of the two families is led by a former barangay official,” Hermoso told reporters.

He said the three civilians who were wounded in the crossfire were rushed to a hospital for medication.

Hermoso said a senior MILF leader, Ustadz Wahid Tundok, has dispatched a peacekeeping group to pacify the rival families and to stay away from populated areas in Barangay Balanaken.