Troops clash with BIFF, recover IEDs

COTABATO – Government troops have recovered two improvised explosives and weapons left behind by pro-ISIS fighters following a series of clashes in the restive Muslim province of Maguindanao, officials announced Wednesday.

Officials said soldiers pursuing the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters recovered the explosives assembled from water pumps in the village of Salman in Ampatuan town where security forces clashed with gunmen late Tuesday afternoon.

Two automatic rifles were also recovered by troops in the village of Tuayan in nearby Datu Hoffer town on Wednesday.

“Operating troops have recovered high-powered firearms and improvised explosive devices in two areas where military troops previously clashed with the Daesh-inspired terrorist group,” said Major Arvin Encinas, a spokesman for the 6^th Infantry Division.

Encinas, quoting a report by Colonel Jose Narciso, commander of the 601^st Infantry Brigade, said soldiers were still pursuing the BIFF who broke into smaller groups to evade the troops.

“Our troops continue to scour the two areas of engagement while surgical operations are continuously being conducted in possible withdrawal route of the enemies. Troops are still pursuing the fleeing enemies,” Narciso said.

Lieutenant General Cirilito Sobejana, chief of the Western Mindanao Command, said they will crush the BIFF, blamed for the spate of terrorism in the troubled region. “We are continuously gaining grounds and we remain steadfast in our efforts to crush down the remaining militants who refuse to return to the folds of the law,” he said.

The BIFF pledged allegiance to the Islamic State and vowed to fight the government in an effort to put up a caliphate in the southern Philippines. (With a report from Rhoderick Beñez.)

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