Jolo Island has been the scene of the worst bloodletting in the four decades of the Moro separatist insurgency.
On Oct. 10, 1977, guerrillas of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) massacred 34 officers and men led by Brig. Gen. Teodulfo Bautista in Patikul town while on a mission to pursue a peace dialogue with the rebels.
Three years later, on Feb. 12, 1981, insurgents attacked an Army battalion deployed on Pata Island just off the provincial capital of Jolo, leaving 119 officers and soldiers dead in the biggest single loss of lives in an encounter between the Moro separatists and the military.
On Feb. 7, 2005, 13 Marines were killed when followers of MNLF leader Nur Misuari attacked Army posts in Panamao town. Gun battles between the Moro guerrillas and government troops continued for more than two days, leaving as many as 40 soldiers and 30 guerrillas dead.
On Aug. 9, 2007, 26 soldiers were killed at Maimbung town clashes with Moro guerrillas. The military said the attackers included Abu Sayyaf bandits and rogue elements within the MNLF.
On July 28, 2014, the Abu Sayyaf launched a mortar-and-bazooka attack on two passenger vehicles in Talipao town, killing 23 jeepney passengers, including five children and three senior citizens.
In July, 22 Abu Sayyaf bandits were killed and 16 others wounded in the assaults that started since July 7 in the jungles of Sulu, while one soldier was killed and six others were wounded in the fighting.