Ten Killed in Clashes Between Army and Islamists in Philippines
17:52 09.04.2015(updated 18:05 09.04.2015)
Ten people in total, including eight Islamists and two Philippine soldiers, were killed during a Philippine army attack against the al-Qaeda-linked militant group.
BALI (Sputnik) – Eight Islamists and two Philippine soldiers were killed in an offensive against the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf group (ASG) in the southern province of Sulu, spokesman for the Philippine army Lt. Col. Harold Cabunoc said Thursday.
"Two army captains and 13 soldiers were injured," Cabunoc said as cited by GMA News. The spokesman added that ten ASG militants were injured.
A major offensive conducted by the Philippine army was launched after intelligence data showed a large movement of armed terrorists near the city of Patikul in the south of the country. According to army specialists, about 250 terrorists were concentrated in the area.
Abu Sayyaf Group rose to prominence in the early 2000s. In early 2004, the organization carried out the largest terrorist attack in the history of the Philippines when it blew up a ferry in Manila Bay, killing over 100 people. The group is also notorious for ransom kidnappings.
In 2001, the militants kidnapped 20 people, including three Americans, at a Philippine resort and demanded ransom payments. The ASG beheaded one of the American captives and held the other two on Basilan Island in the southern Philippines.
In February 2005, the ASG claimed responsibility for bombings in Manila and two other cities, killing eight and wounding 150.
According to the Philippine military intelligence, ASG amounts to about 400 members.
In 2014, the Philippine army killed in the southern province of Sulu one of the ASG leaders Sihata Latip who was allegedly involved in the abduction of foreign nationals, as well as in a series of violent attacks against the Philippine army.
© Sputnik
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
