3 Army companies running after Basilan ambushers

Manila, Philippines - Three companies of elite military forces are now running after the armed men behind last Wednesday’s ambush in Sumisip, Basilan that left six people dead and 22 others wounded.

Army spokesman Maj. Harold Cabunoc said the soldiers pursuing the bandits are from the 4th Special Forces Battalion, the 4th Scout Rangers Battalion, and the Division Reconnaissance Company. 

A company consists of about 100 soldiers.

“We will ensure that the innocent and hapless civilians will be protected from these notorious criminals who insist (on disturbing) the peace,” Cabunoc said in a text message.

The Army did not give the identity of the group being chased by its elite forces. Previous reports, however, have attributed the ambush to the Abu Sayyaf.

“They are bandits extorting money from plantations in Sumisip,” Cabunoc said.

The Army vowed to maintain its presence in the area to deter violent incidents.

Five of the fatalities in the ambush were workers of the rubber plantation of the Tumahubong Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Development Cooperative. The sixth one was a militiaman. 

The victims reportedly refused to yield to the extortion demands of the bandits.

Last Wednesday’s incident is said to be the second atrocity against the cooperative this year. The first was on April 5 when bandits killed three militiamen securing the plantation workers.

The military said last Wednesday’s ambush in Sumisip happened a day after a military convoy ran over a homemade bomb in an area near Sumisip town, wounding eight soldiers.

The Abu Sayyaf is a local terrorist group believed to have links with international terror cell al-Qaeda. There are about 400 Abu Sayyaf militants in the country.