ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Oct. 09, 2007) – Troops clashed with suspected Moro National Liberation Front forces in the southern Philippines, killing one gunman, the military said on Tuesday.
The fighting erupted near the town of Talipao in Sulu province after patrolling soldiers ran into a group of an MNLF faction.
The military was verifying intelligence reports that the slain gunman allegedly belonged to the Abu Sayyaf, a small but the most violent insurgent group blamed for the spate of bombings and kidnappings in the southern region.
Initial military reports said the gunmen were rogue members of the MNLF.
The MNLF signed a peace deal with the Philippine government in September 1996, but despite the accord many former rebels who were disgruntled with the slow progress and development of Mindanao attacked troops in Sulu.
Its chieftain, Nur Misuari, is currently in jail on rebellion charges after his forces tried, but failed to overrun a military base in the province in 2000. (Mindanao Examiner)
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