25 slain in new RP fighting

Wed, 26 Feb 2003 | Source: AFP

PHILIPPINES: Thirteen people have died in new clashes between the military and Moro separatists in the southern Philippines even as Malaysia and Libya offered to mediate a solution to the 25-year insurgency.

Five guerrillas of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) were killed and a soldier wounded in a gunbattle on Tuesday in Buldon on Mindanao island, regional military spokesman Maj. Julieto Ando said.

A clash on Monday in nearby Pikit left four guerrillas dead and two soldiers wounded, local military commander Col. Carduzo Luna said. Two government militiamen and two civilians were also killed in an MILF ambush on Monday in Sirawai, a military report said.

Meanwhile, five communist guerrillas and seven soldiers, including an officer, were slain in scattered clashes between government forces and rebels in different parts of the Philippines on Tuesday, military officials said. --AFP

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