DIPOLOG CITY (Mindanao Examiner / May 22, 2014) – Government troops captured an Abu Sayyaf militant following a brief gun battle Thursday in the southern Philippine province of Zamboanga del Norte, officials said.
Officials said Najil Ajijul, who uses several aliases, was captured in Tabayo village in Siocon town where he was collared during an escape attempt.
Troops also recovered a .45-caliber pistol from the militant, who was tracked down in the province following the arrest recently of another Abu Sayyaf bomber Nujir Ahidji in a village outside the military’s Western Mindanao Command headquarters in Zamboanga City.
The Western Mindanao Command is one of several military bases in southern Philippines where the US maintains a high-security facility under the command of the Joint Special Operations Task Force-Philippines which is helping local troops fight terrorism.
Just recently, policemen also captured a 36-year old Abu Sayyaf militant, Harijin Jinny, in downtown Zamboanga while working as a security guard on a store just outside the police headquarters.
Last month, police commandos raided an Abu Sayyaf hideout in Zamboanga’s Santa Maria village and killed 2 militants and captured 6 others following a firefight that wounded one policeman. (Mindanao Examiner)
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