Abu Sayyaf rebels, RP troops clash, 27 people killed
Abu Sayyaf rebels, RP troops clash, 27 people killed
Agence France-Presse, Zamboanga City
At least 26 Abu Sayyaf gunmen and one soldier were killed on Sunday while nine other government troops were wounded in fierce clashes in the southern Philippines, an army official said.
Army rangers were on patrol in Jolo Island's Talipao town when they were attacked by Abu Sayyaf guerrillas, triggering running gunbattles resulting in casualties on both sides, military southern command operations chief Col. Roland Detabali said.
He said "heavy fighting erupted" and initially involved close- quarter combat.
Sixteen Abu Sayyaf gunmen were killed and their bodies recovered by troops for identification at the town center.
One soldier was also slain while nine others were injured.
Military southern command chief Lt. Gen. Roy Cimatu said sporadic clashes continued until late Sunday afternoon, resulting in the deaths of two other guerrillas and forcing the military to dispatch two MG-520 attack helicopters to support ground troops and pound rebel positions.
Meanwhile on nearby Basilan island, where another Abu Sayyaf unit is holding two Americans and nine Filipinos captive, a government militiaman was killed and beheaded by the rebels as they fled troops in Lantawan town, triggering clashes, the military said.
Cimatu said at least eight Abu Sayyaf gunmen were killed in Basilan in clashes on Sunday.
He said reports from the field indicate the hostages, including the Americans, had been sighted being tagged along by the rebels in a "thickly forested" area on the outskirts of Lantawan.
Meanwhile in Kuala Lumpur, Peace negotiations between the Philippines government and Moro rebels were "suspended" at the weekend after hitting a snag, a rebel spokesman said on Sunday.
"We cannot agree on certain points. We will go back for consultation with our principals in the Philippines," said Murad Ebrahim, military affairs vice chairman of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).
Murad, who headed an 18-member MILF delegation to the six-day talks in Malaysia, said the two parties disagreed on how to use the money that would be allocated for development projects in conflict-affected areas.
The government insisted that it should manage the projects in poverty stricken Mindanao in the south of the country, while the rebels said they should be managed by the MILF.