14 MILF rebels killed in military offensive

COTABATO CITY – The military reported killing 14 suspected Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels yesterday in the manhunt for the MILF guerrillas who attacked three towns in Sultan Kudarat, killing nine villagers on Christmas eve.

On Christmas Day, five people were wounded in separate grenade attacks in President Quirino town in the province, officials said yesterday.

Two men riding tandem on a motorcycle hurled a grenade at a house in Tacurong City, wounding three people.

Two more people were injured when unidentified men fired rocket grenades at a restaurant in the city several hours later.

Regional Army spokesman Lt. Col. Julieto Ando said the rebels led by Wahid Tundok and Basit Usman fired rockets and mortars on the troops, triggering a two-hour gun battle in two villages in Shariff Aguak, Maguindanao.

Ando said the MILF rebels earlier attacked an Army detachment in nearby Datu Saudi Ampatuan town.

Local officials said eight rebels were killed after troops responded with grenade and mortars.

Two of the slain rebels were identified only as Manan and Odin, both killed during the mortar barrage.

Six more rebels were killed by government troops when they attacked a detachment in Aleosan, North Cotabato.

Ando said military forces tightened security in some areas in Central Mindanao due to persistent intelligence reports that MILF rebels would attack more Christian villages and worship sites on New Year’s Day.

“The 6th ID (Army’s 6th Infantry Division) is not taking chances. These renegade MILF rebels are known for their disrespect of their central committee and for already being detached from their chain of command. They are loose cannons now,” Ando said.

Sporadic clashes between MILF forces and soldiers were also reported to have occurred at the border of Maguindanao and Sultan Kudarat provinces, according to Ando.

Ando said more soldiers have been fielded along main roads in Central Mindanao to prevent MILF forces from harassing commuters and motorists.

Ando said the Army’s 75th Infantry Battalion has been deployed to Sen. Benigno Aquino town in Sultan Kudarat to block the MILF forces behind the attacks last Christmas eve.

The attacks came at a time when the military claimed to have drastically reduced the capability of the MILF to mount large-scale offensives.

Ando said the attacks were an attempt by the group to show their strength in the light of renewed efforts to revive the scuttled peace talks between the government and the MILF.

Following the incident, Ando said soldiers would intensify their combat operations and pursue the attackers.

Ando said the attacks are the fulfillment of the rebel group’s warning that they would retaliate for the military offensives allegedly launched by government forces during the holy month of Ramadan.

Armed Forces spokesman Lt. Col. Ernesto Torres said the military would continue to confront the MILF threat.

“The (MILF) have once again attacked villages. They are observed to be operating in large-scale formations. The military shall confront these lawless groups in accordance with these recent developments,” Torres said.

He added the AFP has succeeded in degrading the manpower and logistics of the MILF.

The situation on the ground remains fluid, however, forcing troops to make tactical adjustments in the face of the prevailing situation, Torres said.

“In warfare, strategies vary and it may vary in the middle of battle,” he pointed out.

‘Anti-Christmas’

The military had launched air and ground offensives against the MILF rebels behind the Christmas eve attacks.

Col. Marlou Salazar, commander of the Army’s 601st Brigade, said the MILF led by Commander Jakiri harassed Manobo villagers in Ninoy Aquino town in Sultan Kudarat, forcing them to leave their village at gunpoint while the rebels ransacked their houses.

Three barangays in Ninoy Aquino and two villages in Kalamansig town fell under the control of the MILF after the attack.

Initial reports said the rebels killed six Manobo villagers, including a newborn baby.

Officials said the rebels retreated to Palimbang town, also in Sultan Kudarat, just as government troops arrived with two OV-10 bomber planes.

Fr. Joel Canonizado, a parish priest in Ninoy Aquino, said about 450 families took shelter in two public schools in the town center.

“We appeal for immediate food assistance to the evacuees,” Canonizado said.

“I am sad with this incident, it happened during Christmas where we are supposed to be at peace in our homes,” he said.

Basilan Bishop Martin Jumoad, for his part, said the attacks in Sultan Kudarat, Cotabato and Basilan might have been coordinated by what he called “anti-Christmas” groups.

Considering the timing of the consecutive terrorist attacks, Jumoad stressed he is not discounting the possibility that the three brutal incidents could be related.

Jumoad said the attack in Basilan last Dec. 23 was intended to “sow fear so Catholics would not attend the Misa de Gallo.”

It was meant as a signal to the public and the authorities that they are still capable of mounting a terrorist attack, he said.

At least 26 people were injured when grenades were hurled near a fastfood outlet near Sta. Isabel Cathedral in Isabela, Basilan.

Authorities suspect Abu Sayyaf extremists were behind the attacks.

The following day, Dec. 24, as people were busy preparing for their Christmas eve dinner, MILF rebels attacked three towns in the provinces of Cotabato and Sultan Kudarat, leaving nine people dead and eight others wounded.

“I think they (the attacks) could be connected because the aim was to sow fear and terror,” Jumoad said.

Cagayan de Oro Archbishop Antonio Ledesma also expressed concern over the series of bombing incidents in Mindanao.

“Here in Mindanao, we pray for peace and the resumption of the peace talks to bring about lasting peace in Mindanao,” Ledesma said.

This developed as suspected Abu Sayyaf extremists attacked two Marine detachments in Patikul, Sulu on Christmas Day.

“The Abu Sayyaf group took advantage, thinking the soldiers were hanging out after the celebration on Christmas eve,” Western Mindanao Command spokeswoman 1Lt. Steffani Cacho said.

Cacho said troops from the 5th Marine Battalion Landing Team (MBLT) in Barangay Taglibi were able to repel the attackers, forcing them to retreat.

The bandits escaped but they torched the Datu Uddin Bajim Central Elementary School to divert pursuit operations.

Cacho said the bandits then staged another attack at a Marine detachment in Barangay Danag.

“The bandits were also repelled. They took advantage of Christmas eve but the soldiers have been on alert,” Cacho said.

There were no immediate reports of casualties or injuries on both sides. –(With James Mananghaya, Roel Pareño, Evelyn Macairan - By John Unson; Philstar News Service, www.philstar.com)