US soldiers, Filipino workers fired at in Basilan

ISABELA CITY, Philippines – A team of US soldiers and about a dozen Filipino construction workers were fired at by unidentified men shortly before 7 a.m. Saturday in Barangay (village) Amaloy in Ungkaya Pukan, Basilan, a military official said.

Colonel Ramon Yogyog told the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Task Force Basilan commander, that one of the construction workers was injured in the incident but the US soldiers were unharmed.

He said that according to a field report on the incident, the US troops were in Amaloy as they brought with them heavy equipment for use in a road construction project funded by the US government.

Colonel Ricardo Visaya, commander of the Army’s 104th Infantry Brigade, said the attackers numbered about 30.

He said soldiers from the 13th Scout Ranger Company responded and engaged the attackers in a brief firefight.