MILF claims 13 soldiers killed; Army says 10 rebels dead in Lanao clash

ZAMBOANGA CITY – Government troops and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) guerrillas clashed anew in Lanao del Sur, turning the encounter into a propaganda war.

The military claimed the MILF sustained a number of casualties which forced the rebels to retreat.

The MILF, on the other hand, claimed 13 soldiers from the Army’s 29th Infantry Battalion were killed when a rocket-propelled grenade hit a truck full of troops.

The encounter occurred when 200 MILF rebels attacked the convoy of the Army’s 1st Division in a remote village in Wao town.

Lt. Col. Agane Adriatico, 1st Army Division spokesman, said the troops under the 29th IB were on security patrol when they were attacked by the rebels.

Adriatico could not immediately give exact figures of casualties but cited intelligence reports that the MILF sustained scores of casualties and wounded that forced them to retreat.

The Army claimed at least 10 rebels were killed and 15 wounded.

Four of the slain rebels were identified by local officials as Marunsing Kamir, Pandih Saadudin, Karutin Musani, and a certain Makugar.     

Troops also found an unused rocket, bloodstained rebel camouflage uniforms and documents in the hinterland area where the rebels took up positions, the military said.

The MILF, however, claimed it was the military that suffered the most casualties in the firefight.

MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu said only three guerrillas were wounded. He said eight militiamen and several soldiers also died.

Kabalu denied the rebels were gearing up to attack, saying the area was their stronghold.

“We are a rebel force and our men can move to a new area anytime as part of guerrilla tactics,” he said.

The MILF claimed that as many as 23 soldiers were killed in the fighting. 

“There was no such number and besides, we are not hiding our casualties because the immediate family, if there is casualty, is informed. The reported casualty is clear propaganda,” Adriatico added.

Army spokesman Lt. Col. Romeo Brawner said 10 MILF rebels were killed in the six-hour encounter.

Brawner said troops monitored about 100 rebels gathering in the area and moved in to cut off their advance.

“The firefight lasted six hours after which the MILF rebels withdrew,” Brawner said.

He said there were no casualties on the government side, while 15 other MILF rebels were wounded, based on military reports from the field.

Brawner stressed the military cannot hide its battle casualties, unlike the rebels, because they are reported to soldiers’ families.

The rebels were reportedly led by Aleem Sulaiman Pangalian, one of the three MILF commanders government forces have been hunting for leading a bloody rampage in several communities in Central Mindanao last July.

Security forces, on the other hand, are bracing for more attacks from the MILF after seven rebels were killed and seven others wounded during an encounter in Barangay Rangaban, Midsayap, North Cotabato last Monday.

The military said some rebels under renegade MILF commander Ameril Umbra Kato tried to take over a militia detachment in Barangay Rangaban when they were repulsed.

The government stepped up military operations against the MILF after he rebel group launched a series of raids in July that left dozens of civilians dead, and many homes and businesses ruined.

The government said over 600,000 people have been affected by the fighting, and tens of thousands remain in evacuation camps scattered across Mindanao.

The rebel attacks were launched after the Supreme Court threw out a proposed deal that would have given the rebels control over an expanded Muslim autonomous area.

Mrs. Arroyo has also called off peace talks with the MILF, which has rejected demands to surrender the rebel commanders behind the attacks.

Last week, the military ordered troops to scale down offensives against MILF units to help hundreds of thousands of displaced people return to their homes and farms before the Christmas holidays.

The military said the decrease in armed engagements between government troops and the MILF in Central Mindanao indicates the rebels have withdrawn to consolidate what is left of their forces.

Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro said there has been a “significant downturn of offensives” from the MILF but warned that this is no reason for authorities to be complacent.

“There are many factors in the reduction of the attacks we are seeing. These include battle fatigue, low ammunition and supplies. They can’t sustain a long offensive,” Teodoro said.

“But we’re not saying that there will no longer be offensives in the future,” he added.

The Defense department said that in October, there were only 45 armed incidents, including MILF-initiated “guerrilla operations and terrorist activities,” as well as troop operations against the rebels.

So far this month, there have been 16 armed incidents recorded, not including the latest skirmishes in Lanao del Sur.

Teodoro admitted the prospect of reviving the peace talks with the MILF still remains uncertain.

Presidential Adviser for the Peace Process Secretary Hermogenes Esperon Jr. earlier said the Arroyo administration will not be rushed into resuming talks with the MILF even as the government pursues dialogues with communities and other stakeholders in the peace process in Mindanao.  – With James Mananghaya, John Unson, Paolo Romero, Ramil Bajo, AP