No soldiers hurt in attacks on Army outposts in Maguindanao town

COTABATO CITY, Philippines — Dawlah Islamiya bandits shot with assault rifles and anti-tank rockets two Army posts in Datu Saudi Ampatuan town in Maguindanao in separate attacks late Tuesday.

No one was reported hurt from among members of the Army's 57th Infantry Battalion in the detachments in Barangays Elian and Salbo but the incidents triggered panic among villagers in farming communities nearby.

The Datu Saudi police and the Army's 57th IB have confirmed that Dawlah Islamiya gunmen were responsible for the attacks.

The Dawlah Islamiya, also known as the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, operates in the fashion of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.

The group, tagged in deadly bombings in central Mindanao in the past five years, has since been trying to sabotage the peace process between Malacañang and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.

Police Lt. Melvin Laguting, chief of the Datu Saudi municipal police, said Wednesday armed men first attacked the Army detachment in Elian and immediately scampered away after soldiers returned fired.

Another group fired rifles and 40-millimeter grenades at the detachment at Barangay Salbo about two hours later, according to Laguting.