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.