ZAMBOANGA CITY (Mindanao Examiner / Dec. 2, 2011) – A military patrol clashed Friday with a group of gunmen in the Muslim province of Basilan in the southern Philippines, officials said.
Officials said the fighting erupted in the village of Lawila in Lantawan town where Scout Rangers engaged the armed men in a running gun battle.
“There were no reports of casualties on both sides, but troops recovered seven automatic rifles left behind by the gunmen,” said Army Lieutenant Colonel Randolph Cabangbang, a spokesman for the Western Mindanao Command.
It was not immediately known whether the gunmen were members of the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf or the larger Moro Islamic Liberation Front, but both groups are actively operating in the restive province.
Just this week, patrolling security forces also recovered two improvised explosives planted in Basilan’s Isabela City which had been targeted in the past by rebels. (Mindanao Examiner)
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