COTABATO CITY, Philippines — An alleged ranking leader of terrorist group Dawlah Islamiya was killed when an improvised explosive device (IED) went off in Datu Salibo, Maguindanao del Sur yesterday.
Authorities identified the fatality as Samaon Odin Amil, alias Kumander Pagadian, said to be a senior leader of the Dawlah Islamiya.
The Army’s 601st Infantry Brigade said Amil was supposed to launch bomb attacks in Datu Salibo, but the IED he was carrying went off prematurely.
Sources said Amil was a comrade of Abdulkareem Lumbatan Hashim, alias Kumander Jacket, an alleged bomb expert who was killed by the police and the military in a shootout in Tacurong City in January.
Hashim was tagged in several attacks on buses and commercial establishments in central Mindanao.