The attack on the outpost of the Army’s 37th Infantry Battalion in Barangay Pagatin came hours after United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan offered assistance to the Philippine government in resolving the decades-old Muslim insurgency through peaceful means.
Lt. Gen. Roy Kyamko, Armed Forces’ Southern Command chief, said the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebel-attackers were positioned at least 300 meters away from the detachment and fired at it using assault rifles.
Soldiers manning the detachment shot it out with the guerrillas for about 10 minutes.
Kyamko said the 37th IB is in the area as a peacekeeping force.
MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu called on the ceasefire monitoring panel to investigate the incident, accusing the military of triggering periodic clashes by encroaching into their areas.
Government and MILF peace negotiators are holding back-channel talks to finally pave the way for the resumption of formal negotiations. — Roel Pareño