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By Al Jacinto, Correspondent and
Jefferson Antiporda, Reporter
BASILAN ISLAND: At least ten government soldiers
were wounded infierce fighting Sunday with Muslim rebels in the
southern Filipino island of Basilan, officials said.
Philippine Marines chief General Mohammad
Dolorfino said Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels, backed by the
Abu Sayyaf, attacked a military detachment in Tongbato village in
Ungkaya Pukan town near Tipo-Tipo town. Ten soldiers were wounded in
the raid, he said.
A few hours later MILF and ASG men ambushed the
reinforcement team on board the V150 armored vehicle along Matarling
Village also in the said town wounding another soldier because of a
land mine blast. Military men were able to retaliate which resulted
in the killing of two rebels initially identified as Pepoy and Tete
Indama.
Dolorfino said the MILF rebels were led by one
Commander Hudli Maya and were backed by several members of the Abu
Sayyaf group.
The rebels started to withdraw at around 11 a.m.
after Dolorfino called up the MILF Coordinating Committee on the
Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH).
“I called up the MILF-CCCH, an the Ad Hoc
Joint Action Group [Ahjag] even my counterpart at around 10 a.m.,
the CCCH of the government was also informed of the incident . . .
the MILF directed their forces to withdraw,” Dolorfino said.
When asked if he questioned his counterpart at
the MILF why their forces joined the ASG, Dolorfino said it is
always the situation and it’s a clear violation of the ceasefire
on part of the MILF because they are supposed to help the military
against the ASG.
“It’s indeed a violation of the ceasefire
agreement, they are supposed to help us against the Abu Sayyaf and
here we are, while they are together,” Dolorfino aded.
The military on the other hand has not ordered a
pursuit operation against the enemy because, Dolorfino said it will
be a violation of the ceasefire agreement, instead, he ordered his
brigade commander to immediately file ceasefire violation complaint.
“The MILF that attacked the detachment in
Ungkaya Pukan is based in Barangay Ginanta, Al Barkah which is very
far away so there is a very obvious violation, there is an
encroachment,” he continued.
The MILF said troops first attacked rebel forces
in Tipo-Tipo. It also denied that Abu Sayyaf militants had joined
the MILF in the fighting. “The soldiers attacked our positions in
Tipo-Tipo town and fighting is going on and there is no Abu Sayyaf
in our group,” Mohagher Iqbal, chief MILF peace negotiator, said
in a separate interview.
The MILF is currently negotiating peace with
Manila, but despite a ceasefire accord sporadic fighting still
continue in many parts of Mindanao with rebels and soldiers accusing
each other of breaking the truce.
Police also deployed forces in the area to
secure the civilians. It did not say how many people had fled their
homes. “We are awaiting reports from the ground,” said Senior
Superintendent Salik Macapantar, the provincial police chief.
Iqbal said government troops attacked the MILF
forces, triggering a fierce firefight. “The military again
violated the cease-fire agreement. Our forces are just responding to
military attacks and rebels are only defending themselves,” he
said.
The MILF has repeatedly warned security forces
to stay away near rebel camps and soldiers had been reported
encroaching in those areas and sparking sporadic clashes.
Last week, soldiers fired on armed rebels
working at a farm in Baguindan village, igniting hours of sporadic
clashes in Tipo-Tipo town, Iqbal said.
Military officials have issued conflicting
statements about the fighting and said troops clashes with the Abu
Sayyaf. Other officials said the MILF attacked a group of marines
securing a road project in the town.
But as for the ASG members who joined the
attack, Dolorfino assured that they would be subjected to punitive
operations.
It is the second clash between the MILF and
government forces this month after the Malaysian peace keepers
started to pull out from Mindanao in connection with the expiration
of their contract as part of the International Monitoring Team
overseeing the on going peace negotiations between the two parties.
While concerns over the possible rise in
violence following the withdrawal of the Malaysian peacekeepers were
raised, the government maintained that people in Mindanao are more
supportive of peace than violence.
The MILF has accused the Arroyo government of
delaying the peace talks after negotiations were stalled last year
over demands for Muslim ancestral domain.
Rebel leaders said the ancestral domain is the
single most important issue in the peace negotiations before they
can reach a political settlement and with the talks stalled; the
hope of ending more than three decades of bloody hostilities remains
dim.
Manila said the provisions of the peace
agreement should be within the framework of the Constitution.
Government negotiators, led by Rodolfo Garcia, had previously
approved the ancestral domain only to renege on the deal later.
Sporadic clashes had been reported in Mindanao
since last month after Malaysia, which is brokering the peace talks,
pulled out its truce observers because of the slow progress of the
negotiations. Malaysia has blamed the Arroyo government for the
delay in the talks.
Security forces also raided the house of Mike
Dalem, an MILF political officer, in Buluan town in Maguindanao
province last week. Iqbal said the raid was illegal and violated the
ceasefire agreement the government signed with the MILF.
The MILF previously said the Philippine military
have been building up its forces in Mindanao the past weeks and it
fears that renewed hostilities may break out because troops were
reported massing near areas controlled by rebels in Maguindanao and
Lanao del Sur provinces.
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