2 Sayyaf men killed in clashes with Army in Sulu

ZAMBOANGA CITY—Two members of the homegrown terror group Abu Sayyaf were killed in a series of clashes in Patikul town, Sulu province, the military said.

Maj. Gen. William Gonzales, head of the Army’s Joint Task Force Sulu, said the clashes took place at the boundaries of three villages—Tauna, Taglibi and Panglahayan—starting at 9:30 a.m. on Friday (April 23).

Soldiers from three Army battalions—2nd Special Forces, 32nd Infantry and 21st Infantry—were on the offensive against the terror group led by its chief and local bomb maker Mudzmar ‘Mundi’ Sawadjaan.

Sawadjaan’s eldest brother, Mujafal ‘Jhapz’ Sawadjaan, and a companion identified as Muktihar ‘Mukti’ Taha were killed in the clashes.

Their bodies were found by soldiers past 3 p.m. after the exchange of gunfire subsided as Sawadjaan and his forces fled.

TSB