Kato's men fire at evacuees

COTABATO CITY, Philippines  – Marauding members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Movement (BIFM) riding on motorcycles opened fire at a makeshift evacuation site in Shariff Aguak, Maguindanao yesterday, killing an evacuee and seriously wounding another, officials said.

Dr. Tahir Sulaik, chief of the Maguindanao Integrated Provincial Health Office, said the gunmen attacked while relief teams from his office were attending to the needs of at least 136 families at the evacuation site.

The BIFM members led by Ameril Umbra Kato earlier staged attacks in Maguindanao and North Cotabato, displacing more than 25,000 villagers in Maguindanao alone.