32 soldiers injured in clash with Abu Sayyaf in Sulu

Update

ZAMBOANGA CITY – Thirty-two soldiers were injured in a clash with Abu Sayyaf bandits, which lasted for over an hour in Talipao, Sulu on Sunday.

Colonel Cirilito Sobejana, commander of the Joint Task Group Sulu, said the gun battle took place around 9:30 a.m. between elements of the 41st Infantry Battalion and some 150 bandits under Hatib Hajan Sawadjaan in Barangay Lao.

Sawadjaan was an Abu Sayyaf sub-leader.

The Abu Sayyaf was also believed to have suffered casualties during the firefight, Sobejana said.

The soldiers, which conducted a mopping up operation after the clash, recovered an M-16 rifle left behind by the bandits, he said.