ZAMBOANGA CITY – A government soldier was wounded in a bomb explosion in the southern Filipino province of Sulu where security forces are battling Abu Sayyaf militants tied to the Islamic State.
Lt. Col. Gerry Besana, a spokesman for the military’s Western Mindanao Command, said soldiers from the 21st Infantry Battalion were patrolling the village when the explosion occurred.
There was no report of civilian casualties from the weekend blast. No individual or group claimed responsibility for the bombing, but the Abu Sayyaf was believed behind the attack.
Besana did not release the name and rank of the soldier, but said the wounded infantryman was rushed to a military hospital in the capital town of Jolo.
Just recently, five militants surrendered to the mayor of Sulu’s Mainbung town, Samier Tan, and handed over their rifles to the politician and Lt. Col. Martin Daiz Jr, of the 41st Infantry Battalion.
The militants – who were identified as Utong Hatib Insah, Bensar Hatib Insah, Akag Hatib Insah, Kajang Uro and Atim Mandangan – said they returned to the fold of the law to avail of the government’s amnesty program and live peacefully with their families.
Two other Abu Sayyaf fighters, identified only throught their aliases Iddoh and Pogie, also yielded to the military in Zamboanga City over the weekend. The duo surrendered their rifles to Col. Leonel Nicolas, commander of Joint Task Force Zamboanga; and Colonel Teofilo Bailon Jr, of the Philippine Air Force. But details of their surrender were not made public by the military. (Mindanao Examiner)
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