US troops return to Hawaii after stint in Philippines' Sulu province

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Apr. 16, 2009) – About 30 troops from the Hawaii Army National Guard's 29th Infantry Brigade Combat Team returned Wednesday (Thursday in the Philippines) from a six-month tour in Sulu province in the southern Philippines.

The soldiers arrived at Hickam Air Force Base and were reunited with their families at Wheeler Army Airfield in Honolulu in Hawaii, according to a report by the Honolulu Advertiser on its website.

It said the soldiers served with the Joint Special Operations Task Force – Philippines, which provides security for humanitarian projects such as engineering, medical support and community outreach efforts in Sulu. They also served as advisers to the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

Last year, Abu Sayyaf militants attacked a Philippine and US military convoy in Sulu’s Patikul town near a military base and killing four Filipino marines and wounded ten others.

Guam media reported that the Guam Army National Guard confirmed that a local serviceman was unharmed following the attack on his unit.

The US soldier was not identified, but the Guam Army National Guard said the serviceman is attached to a platoon with the 294th Infantry Regiment deployed in Sulu to aide in the ongoing conflict there.

The Philippine military and the US Embassy in Manila insisted no US soldiers were in the attacked convoy. Maj. Gen. Juancho Sabban, commander of the Filipino Joint Task Force Comet in Sulu Island, said no US soldiers were in the convoy, but some of them aided the local troops wounded in the ambush.

“He was inside the camp. Maybe he got so excited that he thought that he was part of the ambush. The only elements ambushed were the first two vehicles. Yes, they were there because we are partners in humanitarian assistance project and they just turned over a school a few hundred meters away from the ambush site,” Sabban said in a television interview, referring to US troops.

Rebecca Thompson, a US embassy spokesperson, also denied that American soldiers were near the ambush site, but admitted they helped evacuate wounded Filipino troops to safety.

American troops are training and assisting local soldiers in defeating terrorism in the troubled South on the request of the Philippine government.The Abu Sayyaf is holding two foreign Red Cross workers – Swiss national Andreas Notter and Italian Eugenio Vagni - kidnapped in Sulu on January 15 after inspecting a humanitarian project at a prison in Patikul town.

A third hostage, Filipino Mary jean Lacaba, was freed on April 2 after a series of negotiations. The Abu Sayyaf threatened to kill the remaining captives if security forces are not pulled out in Sulu, where US troops are currently training Filipino soldiers. (Mindanao Examiner)

RP Military, US Embassy Say No American Soldiers In Marine Convoy Attacked By Sayyaf In Sulu Island

US and Philippine soldiers pass a village in the southern Philippine island of Sulu in this photo taken in April 27, 2008. Philippine troops, aided by US military intelligence, are pursuing suspected Abu Sayyaf gunmen who ambushed a marine convoy on Saturday, August 31, 2008 in Sulu's Patikul town killing four soldiers and wounding ten more. The Guam Army National Guard says one of its servicemen, from the 294th Infantry Regiment, who was with the convoy, is unhurt in the attack. The Philippine military and US Embassy insisted no US soldiers were in the attacked convoy. American troops are active in humanitarian missions and training and assisting local soldiers in defeating terrorism in the southern Philippines on the request of the Philippine government. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Sept. 1, 2008) – The Philippine military on Monday denied that a US soldier was with a marine convoy attacked by suspected Abu Sayyaf gunmen in the southern island of Sulu.

Four Filipino marines were killed and ten more wounded in the weekend attack near a military base in the village of Bonbon in Patikul town.

The Guam Army National Guard released a brief statement Saturday, confirming that a local serviceman was unharmed following an attack on his unit on the island.

The US soldier was not identified, but the Guam Army National Guard said the serviceman is attached to a platoon with the 294th Infantry Regiment deployed in May in Sulu to aide in the ongoing conflict there. The report was also in the Guam media.

The Philippine military and the US Embassy in Manila insisted no US soldiers were in the attacked convoy.

Maj. Gen. Juancho Sabban, commander of the Filipino Joint Task Force Comet in Sulu Island, said no US soldiers were in the convoy, but some of them aided the local troops wounded in the ambush.

“He was inside the camp. Maybe he got so excited that he thought that he was part of the ambush. The only elements ambushed were the first two vehicles.

Yes, they were there because we are partners in humanitarian assistance project and they just turned over a school a few hundred meters away from the ambush site,” Sabban said in a television interview, referring to US troops.

“The Americans have been helping us in doing all these humanitarian assistance. They were there in our battalion headquarters,” he said.

Sabban said US troops were active in humanitarian missions in Sulu and are not allowed to join combat operations.

Rebecca Thompson, a US embassy spokesperson, also denied that American soldiers were near the ambush site, but admitted they helped evacuate wounded Filipino troops to safety.

American troops are training and assisting local soldiers in defeating terrorism in the troubled South on the request of the Philippine government. (Mindanao Examiner)

Guam Army National Guard Unhurt In Southern Philippines Attack, 4 Filipino Marines Killed

A convoy of US and Philippine troops pass on a village in Jolo town in the southern Filipino province of Sulu. Abu Sayyaf militants attacked US and Filipino soldiers in the village of Bonbon in Sulu's Patikul town on Saturday, August 30, 2008 killing four local soldiers and wounding ten more. A member of the Guam Army National Guard was unharmed in the attack. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / August 31, 2008) – The Philippine military launched a “calibrated” offensive against Abu Sayyaf militants following an attack that killed four Filipino soldiers and wounded ten more in the southern island of Sulu, officials said.

US soldiers were in the military convoy when militants attacked them with mortars and automatic weapons near a marine base in the village of Bonbon in Patikul town over the weekend. The attack occurred two days before the start of the Ramadan, Islam’s holiest month.

Filipino security officials did not report about the presence of US troops in the convoy, but the Guam Army National Guard released a brief statement Saturday, confirming that a local serviceman currently was unharmed following an attack on his unit on the island.

The US soldier was not identified, but the Guam Army National Guard said the serviceman is attached to a platoon with the 294th Infantry Regiment deployed in May in Sulu to aide in the ongoing conflict there.

No other details were made available by the Philippine and US military about the American involvement in the operations against the Abu Sayyaf in Sulu, but the members of the 294th Infantry Regiment are assigned to the U.S. Joint Special Operations Task Force - Philippines.

The attack came two days after Filipino and US soldiers and provincial government officials inaugurated various development and infrastructure projects in Patikul town.

Four artesian wells have been handed over to local officials in the villages of Timpook, Taung, Tanum, and Liang and a new school building in the village of Bonbon and two road projects in Liang and Bud Datu, all in Patikul.

At least 30 US soldiers, part of the Guam Army National Guard's 1st Battalion under the 294th Infantry Regiment, were deployed in Sulu to serve as security - for at least for six months - for a unit of the Special Operations Command-Pacific.

Hundreds of US troops are deployed in Sulu and other parts of the southern Philippines also conducting joint civilian-military operations and training with the Philippine military.

The humanitarian missions is part of the Balikatan, which means "shoulder-to-shoulder," an annual Philippine and US bilateral military humanitarian assistance and training activity.

Though US and Philippine government officials have consistently claimed that the unit is not involved in actual combat, US troops themselves describe their mission as "unconventional warfare" and "counter-insurgency" operations in the country. US troops join Filipino soldiers on patrol, provide them with intelligence, and assist in various aspects of their operation.

American soldiers are also active in many development and humanitarian activities in the southern Philippines, especially in Sulu province where they built roads and schools and join medical missions with local troops and provincial government mostly in poor areas.

Just earlier this year, about 600 US troops worked with civilian authorities and the Armed Forces of the Philippines in various humanitarian projects that included free medical, dental and veterinary care in Sulu province and also in central and Western part of Mindanao.

US and Philippine soldiers, many of them construction engineers, built schools and other community infrastructures in those areas. In 2006, the United States Navy hospital ship Mercy had treated more than 60,000 mostly poor Filipino patients in separate medical missions in Sulu, Basilan and Tawi-Tawi islands, including Zamboanga City, as part of the Project Bayanihan. (Mindanao Examiner)

Photo: US Troops In Southern Philippines

A convoy of US and Philippine troops pass on a village in Jolo town in the southern Filipino province of Sulu, April 27, 2008. At least 30 US soldiers from the Guam Army National Guard are expected to arrive in the southern Philippines to secure American forces assisting and training local troops in battling terrorism and engage at the same time in numerous development and humanitarian projects. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)

National Guard On Their Way To Southern Philippines

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Apr. 30, 2008) – More US troops are expected to arrive soon in the Philippines to support hundreds already deployed in the southern part of the country aiding Filipino troops in battling terrorism.

At least 30 soldiers, part of the Guam Army National Guard's 1st Battalion under the 294th Infantry Regiment, are heading to support the "Operation Enduring Freedom-Philippines," the Guam-based Mariana's Variety newspaper reported Wednesday.

It said the soldiers will serve as security, at least for six months, for a unit of the Special Operations Command-Pacific that is conducting joint civilian-military operations and training with the Philippine military.

US soldiers deployed in the south are under the Joint Special Task-Philippines which is based in Zamboanga City, but its "area of operations", according to a US military publication, spans 8,000 square miles, covering the entire island of Mindanao and its surrounding islands and seas. With various military facilities now being constructed for their use, members of the unit refer to their bases in Mindanao as "forward operating base-11" and "advanced operating base-921".

Though US and Philippine government officials have consistently claimed that the unit is not involved in actual combat, US troops themselves describe their mission as "unconventional warfare" and "counter-insurgency" operations in the country. US troops join Filipino soldiers on patrol, provide them with intelligence, and assist in various aspects of their operation.

American soldiers are also active in many development and humanitarian activities in the southern Philippines, especially in Sulu province where they built roads and schools and join medical missions with local troops and provincial government mostly in poor areas.

The humanitarian missions is part of the Balikatan, which means "shoulder-to-shoulder," an annual Philippine and US bilateral military humanitarian assistance and training activity.

Sulu Governor Sakur Tan said the humanitarian missions helped many poor families in the province.

Just earlier this year, about 600 US troops worked with civilian authorities and the Armed Forces of the Philippines in various humanitarian projects that included free medical, dental and veterinary care in Sulu province and also in central and Western part of Mindanao.

US and Philippine soldiers, many of them construction engineers, built schools and other community infrastructures in those areas.

In 2006, the United States Navy hospital ship Mercy had treated more than 60,000 mostly poor Filipino patients in separate medical missions in Sulu, Basilan and Tawi-Tawi islands, including Zamboanga City, as part of the Project Bayanihan. (Mindanao Examiner)