Gunmen ambushed army patrol in Cotabato City

COTABATO CITY - Unidentified gunmen ambushed an army patrol, tossing a grenade and opening fire on the troops late Sunday in the southern Philippine city of Cotabato.

Army spokesman Major Arvin Encinas said 3 gunmen on a motorcycle tailed the military vehicle along Sinsuat Avenue and attacked the soldiers. There were reported casualties on the military side, he claimed but could not say how many were wounded in the attack.

 

"Soldiers managed to return fire and the gunmen sped off. We have soldiers wounded, but I am still waiting for the official report. Troops were tracking down the assailants," Encinas said.

 

He said soldiers also disrupted what they thought was an improvised explosive left near the scene. "It was not a bomb," Encinas said.

 

No individual or group claimed responsibility for the ambush, but suspicion fell heavily on the terror group BIFF or Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters who are being blamed for the spate of terror attacks in the restive South.

 

Military assaults on BIFF  strongholds and its allies continue outside Cotabato, especially in Maguindanao and Lanao provinces, according to Encinas, who said that the pro-ISIS terror group had suffered major casualties since the operations began this year.

 

Most of the BIFF members were former fighters of the larger Moro Islamic Liberation Front which signed a peace deal with Manila in 2014. Its leader, Murad Ebrahim, now sits as Chief Minister of the Muslim autonomous region as part of the peace deal. 

 

But despite his rule over 5 Muslim provinces and promise to uplift the living standard of his constituents, radical groups continue to challenge his authority. (Mindanao Examiner)

 

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