Pro-ISIS militants raid Philippine town

COTABATO CITY- Dozens of Filipino gunmen allied with the Islamic State raided the southern town of Datu Piang in Maguindanao province, attacking the municipal hall and police station, including a Catholic church and an army post and torching a prowl car before escaping under cover of darkness on Thursday, officials said.

Officials said the police on Friday launched a massive operation to track down at least 50 members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) and Dawlah Islamiya (DI) who are fighting for the establishment of a separate state in the volatile region.

The 6^th Infantry Division said about 20 gunmen harassed an army detachment in the village of Kanguan near the town center as 30 more militants attacked a police car. “Immediately, the elements of PNP led by Captain Israel Bayona, Datu Piang municipal police chief, alighted from the patrol car and seek cover near the Notre Dame School,” it said, adding, soldiers from the detachment traded gunfire with the militants and repelled further assault.

The army said the fighting between gunmen and security forces was heavy and lasted 40 minutes until the attackers fled to the Liguasan Marsh. No casualties were reported from the police or military side.

Lt. Col. Anhouvic Atilano, an army spokesman, tagged the group of Karialan Saga Animbang and Sukarno Guilil as behind the daring raid.

The Western Mindanao Command in Zamboanga City released a brief report on the attack and only quoted Lt. Gen. Corleto Vinluan, Jr. as saying:  “Initial report from the ground disclosed that an undetermined number of BIFF militants passed by a patrol car which was left unguarded, triggering them to burn it.”

“Our troops immediately responded to clear the area. Accordingly, the BIFF left the area after they burned the PNP patrol car. We are on top of the situation. This is just an isolated case. A joint AFP-PNP investigation is currently being conducted,” Vinluan said.

It was unclear how the BIFF and DI managed to consolidate a large group of heavily armed militants undetected by the police and military, and even launched daring attacks in the town’s main business district.

Local and provincial government officials, including Chief Minister Murad Ebrahim, of the Muslim autonomous region, did not issue any statement. Most of BIFF and DI’s members were former fighters of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front whose leader is Ebrahim.

Ebrahim, whose group broke away in 1978 with the larger Moro National Liberation Front headed by Nur Misuari, signed a peace deal with Manila in 2014 about 18 years after Misuari inked a similar accord ending decades of bloody fighting in the South. (Mindanao Examiner)

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