4 suspected Abus, 3 soldiers die in clash

ZAMBOANGA CITY — Four suspected Abu Sayyaf members and three soldiers were killed yesterday in an hour-long encounter on an island off Basilan, a military official said.

Brig. Gen. Bonifacio Ramos, commander of the Army’s 103rd Infantry Brigade based in Basilan, said fighting erupted at about 12:30 p.m. after elements of the Riverine Force under the 36th Special Force Company spotted 20 unidentified men in Pandukan point, a strip of land connected by mangroves to Pilas Island.

The Riverine Force members were conducting search operations in an island-village in Pilas when they received information about the presence of armed men in the area.

The suspected Abu Sayyaf members, believed to have evaded military operations in Sulu and Basilan, escaped through the mangrove forest to the main island of Pilas.

Troops recovered 10 high-powered assault rifles left by the fleeing men. — Roel Pareño, Mike Frialde