ZCZC
BFF-21
PHILIPPINE-CLASH-DEATH
5 soldiers dead, 23 others wounded in clash in southern Philippines
MANILA. Nov. 17, 2018 (BSS/XINHUA) – At least five soldiers have been
killed and 23 others wounded as troops clashed with some 50 Abu Sayyaf
militants in Sulu, an island province in the southern Philippines, a military
spokesman said on Saturday.
Lt. Col. Gerry Besana of the military’s Western Mindanao Command, said an
intense firefight broke out around 4 p.m. (local time) on Friday in the
coastal town of Patikul in Sulu province as troops tracked the Abu Sayyaf
militants.
The gun battle raged for an hour and 30 minutes in a village on the
outskirts of Patikul, Besana said.
Besana said the military is still determining if the Abu Sayyaf group also
sustained casualties.
Abu Sayyaf is notorious for killings, kidnapping for ransom and a series of
bombings on the island of Mindanao.