ZAMBOANGA CITY (Zamboanga Journal / 17 Jul) Two unidentified gunmen killed a government soldier in a broad daylight attack in the strife-torn island of Jolo in the southern Philippines, a regional military spokesman said.
Air Force Captain Jose Ritche Pabilonia, of the Southern Command, said the soldier belonged to the Army's 35th Infantry Battalion. He was killed in the village of Alat near downtown Jolo on Sunday.
"The victim suffered multiple gunshot wounds at the back of his body that caused his instantaneous death," Pabilonia said in a statement.
He said the assailants fled on a motorcycle after the killing. No group or individual claimed responsibility for the attack, but the island is a known stronghold of the militant Abu Sayyaf group, blamed for the spate of killings of soldiers and bombings in the restive region.
Unidentified gunmen also shot dead three army soldiers in separate attacks in Jolo earlier this month. One of the soldiers was heading home on a motorcycle when two gunmen ambushed him in the village of Kasalamatan near downtown Jolo.
The two other soldiers were ambushed in the village of Anuling in Jolo's Patikul town.
Last month, troops disarmed powerful Abu Sayyaf bomb planted near the Pitogo Elementary School in Jolo's Kalingalang Kaluang town.
The United States has offered as much as $5 million bounty for known Abu Sayyaf commanders, including its chieftain Khadaffy Janjalani, and Manila also put up P100 million bounties for the capture of the group's leaders and their members dead or alive. The US included the group on its list of foreign terrorist organizations.
Dozens of people have been killed in gun attacks and bombings on the island since last year.
The absence of governance, corruption and frequent travels of local officials to Manila or abroad have add up to the worsening situation on the already dangerous island of Jolo, about 950 km from Manila, where troops are battling the Abu Sayyaf and renegade members of the former rebel group Moro National Liberation Front.
Kidnappings-for-ransom, largely blamed by authorities to the Abu Sayyaf, and clan war are also rampant in Jolo.
Air Force Captain Jose Ritche Pabilonia, of the Southern Command, said the soldier belonged to the Army's 35th Infantry Battalion. He was killed in the village of Alat near downtown Jolo on Sunday.
"The victim suffered multiple gunshot wounds at the back of his body that caused his instantaneous death," Pabilonia said in a statement.
He said the assailants fled on a motorcycle after the killing. No group or individual claimed responsibility for the attack, but the island is a known stronghold of the militant Abu Sayyaf group, blamed for the spate of killings of soldiers and bombings in the restive region.
Unidentified gunmen also shot dead three army soldiers in separate attacks in Jolo earlier this month. One of the soldiers was heading home on a motorcycle when two gunmen ambushed him in the village of Kasalamatan near downtown Jolo.
The two other soldiers were ambushed in the village of Anuling in Jolo's Patikul town.
Last month, troops disarmed powerful Abu Sayyaf bomb planted near the Pitogo Elementary School in Jolo's Kalingalang Kaluang town.
The United States has offered as much as $5 million bounty for known Abu Sayyaf commanders, including its chieftain Khadaffy Janjalani, and Manila also put up P100 million bounties for the capture of the group's leaders and their members dead or alive. The US included the group on its list of foreign terrorist organizations.
Dozens of people have been killed in gun attacks and bombings on the island since last year.
The absence of governance, corruption and frequent travels of local officials to Manila or abroad have add up to the worsening situation on the already dangerous island of Jolo, about 950 km from Manila, where troops are battling the Abu Sayyaf and renegade members of the former rebel group Moro National Liberation Front.
Kidnappings-for-ransom, largely blamed by authorities to the Abu Sayyaf, and clan war are also rampant in Jolo.
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