Nine killed in RP gunbattle

Nine killed in RP gunbattle

COTABATO, Philippines (Reuter): Nine people have died during a
gunbattle between Moro rebels and government soldiers in two
southern Philippine villages, the army said yesterday.

More than 50 families have fled the villages of Tupig and
Tunganon in Aleosan town in North Cotabato, 900 kilometers south
of Manila, because of the fighting, local officials said.

Army division commander Brig. Gen. Raul Urgello told reporters
an army captain, three scout rangers and five rebels belonging to
the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) died during the fighting
last Saturday.

He blamed the fighting, which was continuing, on the MILF, who
had moved into neighboring hamlets around Carmen. MILF vice
chairman for political affairs Ghazali Jaafar said it was the
scout rangers who had ventured into its controlled area.