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By Anthony Vargas Reporter
The military said on Friday that
those responsible for the fatal blunder in communication between
Marines besieged by separatist Moro rebels in Basilan and air
support units could be criminally liable.
The Armed Forces spokesman, Lt.
Col. Bartolome Bacarro, said Friday that the inquiry being conducted
by the Marine Inspector General aims to pursue probable criminal and
administrative charges.
A report by the Armed Forces
Inspector General, Major General Ferdinand Bocobo, found “grave”
miscommunication between the Marines and aircraft providing them air
support.
Fourteen soldiers died in the
encounter, with 10 of them being beheaded by their foes.
The investigation revealed that
the 1st Marine Brigade in Basilan sent out the wrong frequency to
air support units from the Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom) in
Zamboanga City to contact the besieged troops in Al-Barka town on
July 10.
Air support units using primary
frequency failed to contact ground troops who were using an
alternate frequency. As a result the planes were reluctant to fire
on enemy position fearing they might hit friendly forces.
Westmincom had sent a UH-1H
gunship, an MG520 attack chopper and an OV-10 bomber to provide air
support to the Marines.
“There was some
miscommunication on the frequency. This was recognized and the IG
recommended to the chief of staff to order the Marines to
investigate some of the administrative liabilities,” Bacarro said
in a briefing.
He said there could be
“criminal liabilities” in the fatal communication error.
The official said military units
should not switch to different radio frequencies without the
concurrence of each other.
“I would say that air component
is an integral part of the operation. In this operation, I cannot
say [if it’s crucial],” Bacarro said.
He said the personnel that sent
the wrong radio frequency to Westmincom had been identified, but he
could not say if they had been relieved.
Following the said incident, the
troops battalion commander, Lt. Col. Felix Almondres and his ground
commander, Maj. Nestor Marcelino had been relieved of his command
pending an investigation.
On Thursday, a fact-finding panel
from the Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH)
said Abu Sayyaf extremists, not Moro Islamic Liberation Front
fighters, beheaded at least four of the Marines
--With AFP
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