Army-BIFF clash leaves 12 dead, 23 wounded

Two soldiers and at least 10 members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) were killed in a six-hour firefight that erupted while Army troopers were in pursuit of a group with links to the Islamic State (IS) in Maguindanao province.

Thirteen soldiers and 10 BIFF fighters were wounded, according to Lt. Col. Anhouvic “Dingdong” Atilano, spokesperson of the 6th Infantry Division.

Atilano said the skirmish in Barangay Penditen of Datu Salibo town started around 5:30 a.m. on Wednesday, when members of the 57th Infantry Battalion stumbled on a BIFF lair near the site where their target, bomb maker Hassan Indal, was hiding.

The troopers were conducting operations against the IS-inspired Dawlah Islamiya Toraype group led by Indal, when they were engaged by some 20 BIFF men.

Atilano said the soldiers were trying to encircle the militants but were hindered by floodwaters from the Ligawasan marsh. It had rained on Tuesday night, he added.

The soldiers had to fall back when fighters from another BIFF faction arrived as reinforcements, Atilano said.

While Army troopers deployed mortars and 105mm artillery backed by MG-520 helicopter gunships, the BIFF militants fought back with rocket-propelled grenades, he added.

Out on bail

Atilano said none of the bodies of the ten BIFF fighters were retrieved, as confirmed by residents in the area.

Indal, also known as Datu Hazam, Atilano said, was arrested in Cotabato City in 2016 but was out on bail a year later.

Indal leads a BIFF faction allied with Esmael Abdulmalik, also known as Abu Toraife, a rabid IS follower in Central Mindanao.

According to Atilano, Indal is the vice chair for internal affairs of Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Movement, the political platform organized by the late BIFF founder Ustadz Ameril Umbra Kato, which grouped together the various BIFF factions.

Wednesday’s clash occurred as the Army makes headway in its “soft hand” approach to BIFF factions that has netted 13 surrenderees this week. Since 2017, at least 200 militants have been lured out of IS allegiance with the promise of socioeconomic assistance. —With a report from Edwin Fernandez