Troops clash with terrorists, MILF says it was 'em

COTABATO CITY – As military forces continue its offensive against the pro-ISIS group Dawlah Islamiya and Maute Group in the town of Maguind in Lanao del Sur province, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front said the fighting was between government troops and its forces.

Acronym of the group’ full Arabic name is al-Dawla al-Islamiya fi al-Iraq wa al-Sham, translated as “Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (or the Levant).”

Army Lt. Col. Palawan Miondas, a spokesman for the 103^rd Infantry Brigade based in Marawi City, said soldiers were fighting terrorists, blamed for the spate of bombings and attacks on innocent civilians.

Miondas said three terrorists and a soldier were killed in the fighting that also wounded three infantrymen since Tuesday. “At least three enemies were killed, but one of our brave soldiers also perished in the fighting and three more are wounded,” he told the regional newspaper Mindanao Examiner by phone from his headquarters.

He said the two groups of terrorists - one under Abu Zacharia of Maute Group and the other from the Hassan Group – were behind the bombings of steel pylons of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines in September 28 and November 30 last year, and the latest was in February 15 which also wounded seven soldiers and two civilians.

“Likewise, they were also responsible in plotting IEDs in different areas in Lanao del Sur which resulted in consecutive deaths and injuries both from the government troops,” Miondas said.

He said troops recovered dozens of terrorist weapons, including three machine guns, and improvised explosives from the fighting in the village of Ilalag. “The operations are continuing in other villages where the terrorists have fled, and our troops have just returned tonight from the clearing operation,” he said. “We recovered at least 34 firearms, IEDs and ISIS flags, and various documents.”

Miondas said the military’s Joint Task Group Haribon has given countless chances to the extremist groups to abandon their violent campaign and to surrender peacefully and “set aside their dreadful ideology and refrain from harming the Meranaos physically and mentally through spreading false religious doctrines that forwards violence. These groups have merged forces and were planning to conduct trainings and plotting aggression activities during the month of Ramadhan and the forthcoming elections.”

But MILF chieftain Murad Ebrahim, who is also the governor of the Bangsamoro autonomous region, issued a statement late Wednesday and said the military clashed with his group.

“Over the past 24 hours. Our dear constituents in Maguing, Lanao del Sur have been troubled, from military airstrikes, and most recently, firefight incident that involved members of the military force and forces of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. As of writing, the incident has claimed several lives. And has forced some of our constituents to flee their homes and find shelter, and nearby areas.”

“We are not closely working with our partners from the municipal government of Maguing, security forces and ministries are already on the ground to assist our internally displaced communities and assure that they get home safely as soon as possible,” he said.

Ebrahim said the regional government is making sure that the ongoing ceasefire between the MILF and the Armed Forces of the Philippines will produce positive outcomes and provide permanent resolution to the conflict. “We are optimistic that no further confrontation will take place,” he said.

Miondas maintained that those killed in the fighting were terrorists who were members of the Dawlah Islamya and the Maute Group which were also involved in the deadly siege of Marawi in May 23, 2017 that lasted five months.

He said the terrorist lairs were also near an illegal camp of the MILF. “We are sure that those terrorists are members of the Dawlah Islamiya,” Miondas said. (Mindanao Examiner)