Philippine military increase recent terrorist killings tally to nine
The nine include perpetrators of last December's deadly university bombing.
MANILA: The Philippine military has increased its Islamic State terrorist killings tally in recent firefights from eight to nine, a number that included militants tagged in last December’s deadly bombing of a university gym.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines chief, Gen. Romeo S. Brawner Jr., commended the “exceptional dedication” of the Army’s 103rd Brigade (103Bde) of the 1st Infantry Division (1ID) for their successful counterterrorism operations in Tapurog village, Piagapo municipality, Lanao del Sur province, on Jan. 25 and 26.
“This operation resulted in the neutralisation of nine members of the Dawlah Islamiyah-Lanao and the capture of nine high-powered firearms and two improvised explosive devices,” Brawner said in a statement.
“The precision and unwavering deviation exhibited in this operation, particularly in targeting the perpetrators of the Mindanao State University bombing on Dec. 3, 2023, deliver swift and decisive justice for the victims of the despicable attack.”
Dawlah Islamiyah, which is the Arabic and local term for Islamic State, is the umbrella name given to local militant groups aligned with the Middle Eastern terror group.
The Army’s spokesman, Col. Louie G. Dema-ala, in another statement, said operating troops from the Army’s 3rd Scout Ranger Battalion under 103Bde encountered heavily armed members of the group, also known as the Maute Group, which resulted in a series of firefights.
“The Army troops were able to neutralise nine local terrorist members…Neutralised individuals were identified as perpetrators of the fatal MSU bombing on Dec. 3, 2023,” said Dema-ala using the abbreviation for Mindanao State University.
Four soldiers were injured in the firefights and were transported to Amai Pakpak Medical Centre for medical treatment, added Dema-ala.
“Rest assured, there will be no let-up in our follow-up operations to eliminate remnants of the local terrorist group,” he said.
Previously, another Army unit commander said eight, not nine terrorists, were killed in the clashes. No explanation was given for the discrepancy in the number of slain militants.
Four people were killed and dozens others injured in the bombing of a Catholic mass held inside a gym at the university in Lanao del Sur’s capital city of Marawi
Three suspects in the deadly bombing case have been arrested so far according to the police, who also released last year images of two suspects identified as Kadapi Mimbesa a.k.a. Engineer and Arsani Membisa a.k.a Katab/Papitos.
The police also released footage from the gym’s CCTV showing the two sought suspects at the gym moments before the explosion.
1ID, in a statement, said of the nine terrorists killed, three were directly responsible for the university bombing.
The Rappler news site cited 1ID as saying in a statement that Mimbesa and Membisa were among the nine terrorists slain in the clashes with the terror group led by Nasser Daud.
Both Brawner and Dema-ala did not name the other seven slain terrorists.
Earlier, Philippine military and police officials said they suspected the gym bombing was retaliation for the killings of the terrorists’ comrades including the highly-wanted Abu Sayyaf Group subleader and expert bombmaker Mudzrimar Sawadjaan @ Mundi and Maute Group subleader Alandoni Macadaya Lucsadatu, a.k.a. Lando/Abu Shams.
Marawi was besieged by the Abu Sayyaf and Maute Groups in 2017 in their quest to carve our regional territory for the Islamic State.
Government forces liberated the city after a five-month battle, the nation’s longest urban warfare.