Decorated Filipino Marine General Takes Oath, Gets Honor

Brigadier General Ramiro Alivio, Commanding General, Combat and Service Support Brigade-Marine Ready Force took his formal oath with President Gloria Arroyo at the Presidential Palace in Manila on Monday, February 16, 2009. He was also given honors at the General Headquarters followed with a call on the Armed Forces Chief of Staff General Alexander Yano.

Photo: The Marines Are Ready...Always!

Marine General Ramiro Alivio and the Philippines Marine ready Force during a readiness inspection Saturday, February 07, 2009 in the Philippine capital.

Photo: Brig. Gen. Ramiro Alivio, An Officer and a Gentleman

Decorated Marine Brigadier General Ramiro Alivio poses during the 58th Anniversary of the Philippines Marines on November 7, 2008 in Manila. The soft-spoken Alivio is popularly known among fellow officers and marines as an Officer and a Gentleman and a dedicated husband and father to his family. He is currently the Commander of the Marines' Combat Service Support Brigade.

Boat sinks off Sulu, 5 dead

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Oct. 13, 2008) – Philippine soldiers rescued 15 passengers and found four bodies from a capsized boat off the southern island of Pata in the Sulu archipelago, officials said.

Officials said among those dead were three minors who drowned after their small boat, battered by huge waves and strong wind, sank over the weekend. A five-year old girl is missing and feared dead. One of those rescued, Juraisa Taub, 8, later died at a clinic.

"The boat was carrying 20 passengers, six of them children, on their way to Pata island from nearby Daongdong island when the tragedy struck," said Major Eugene Batara, a spokesman for the Western Mindanao Command headquarters.

He said one of boat's operators managed to swim to Pata island and sought help.
Those who died in the tragedy were identified as Naima Nassir, 35; Patrah Nassir, 5; Gemar Arkan, 4; and Nihma Arkan, 47. The military identified the missing girl as Sinnag Arkam, 5.

Those who survived have been identified as Hatib Aran, 60; Salip Arson, 40; Rakmah Bahari, 45; Admer Hussein, 14; Elein Parson, 8; Benhur Taub, an infant; Ben Hur Taub Sr. 27; Hussein Arkan, 40; Ardamir Imbug, 28; Armager Imbug, 14; Nurhima Parson, 13, Edemar Taub, 14; Tungga Uddaman, 45; and Mado Tunnga, 18.

"Rescuers also exerted efforts to recover the body of Sinnag Arkan but they were not successful. The search and rescue was aborted due to poor visibility and rough sea condition," Batara said.

Fishermen and civilian divers from Pata island also helped the soldiers in the rescue, but they aborted the search for the missing girl eight hours later due to poor visibility and rough sea condition, he said. (Mindanao Examiner)

US, RP Troops Finish School Buildings In Sulu

Photos released by the Philippine Marines shows Gov. Sakur Tan and Vice Gov. Lady Ann Sahidulla with Marines Maj. Gen. Juancho Sabban and US military commander Maj. Joseph Mouer during the hand-over ceremony of the school buildings in Maimbung town.

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Oct. 13, 2008) – Filipino and US soldiers have formally handed over to Sulu provincial officials three new school buildings they jointly constructed as part of humanitarian and development projects aimed at helping the local Muslim communities.

The projects were inaugurated over the weekend in Maimbung town by Sulu Gov. Sakur Tan and his deputy Lady Ann Sahidulla with Maj. Gen. Juancho Sabban, commander of the Philippine Marines and Maj. Joseph Mouer, the chief of US forces deployed in Sulu.

The buildings were handed over to representatives of the Department of Education and Bato Ugis Elementary School under Abdulmoin Lakibul and local town officials headed by Mayor Najib Maldisa.

“We may only be able to fully achieve our peace objective if we complement it with development. By doing so, we must do it together. Progress comes easily for a community where people are educated and well-informed,” Sabban said.

Tan, on the other hand, stressed the importance of education in Sulu and praised the soldiers for their efforts in building the schools. More than 50 schools have been built by Philippine and US troops since 2006 in Sulu.

“We will continue to support these humanitarian efforts to sustain the achievements of Sulu in promoting peace and development. My administration will always be behind these benevolent projects of the Armed Forces and the US military. We appreciate the efforts of the soldiers in bringing peace to this beautiful province we call home,” Tan said.

US troops have been training Philippine soldiers in Sulu and are active in humanitarian missions. The US has spent more than $10 million in various development projects in Sulu, according to Sabban. (With a report from Erico Rosco)

Sayyaf Falls In Sulu Island

A Philippine Marine photo shows arrested Abu Sayyaf militant Marcial Jabarot who was implicated in the kidnapping of a television presenter Ces Drilon in the southern island of Sulu.

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Oct. 12, 2008) – Philippine soldiers arrested an Abu Sayyaf militant implicated in the kidnapping of a television presenter in the southern island of Sulu, officials said.

Officials said soldiers arrested Marcial Jabarot alias Abu Cesar, after an operation in Jolo town before midnight Saturday.

Jabarot was one of four militants who escaped a police operation Saturday in Jolo town. Three of his companions were also captured late Friday afternoon after a firefight with police commandos that killed one Abu Sayyaf member, Adjili Sakilan.

“Our troops have been relentless in carrying out operations to seize the remaining outlaws. The government forces will continue to keep a close watch on other kidnappers on the loose,” said Marines Maj. Gen. Juancho Sabban, commander of military forces on the island.

Police foiled an Abu Sayyaf attempt to kidnap a grocery store owner in Jolo on Friday. But four militants managed to escape during the clash until soldiers captured Jabarot.

The militants were on a jeep and waiting for their victim when they noticed the presence of policemen and opened fire on them, sparking a firefight that left one gunman dead, said Senior Superintendent Julasirim Kasim, Sulu police chief.

Kasim said the captured militants were behind the kidnappings in June of an ABS-CBN television presenter Ces Drilon and her cameramen Jimmy Encarnacion and Angelo Valderama, including a Muslim university professor Octavio Dinampo, in Sulu's Maimbung town. They were freed a week later in exchange for a huge ransom.

Another Abu Sayyaf faction is holding two aid workers Esperancita Hupida and Millet Mendoza it kidnapped in Tipo-Tipo town in Basilan province last month. (Mindanao Examiner)

2 Killed In Sulu Fighting

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / August 20, 2008) – A Philippine marine commander and a suspected Abu Sayyaf militant were killed in fighting in the southern island of Sulu, officials said on Wednesday.

Militants ambushed Capt. Abduhari Sulani, commander of the 81st Marine Company, as he was traveling on motorcycle on Tuesday near the town of Patikul. Soldiers who pursued the ambushers also killed one of them in a running gun battle.

Soldiers recovered a .45-caliber pistol and two magazines from the slain militant.

“We raise our heads high with full knowledge that he did not die in vain. We pray for the quick recovery and the inner healing of his loved ones,” Marine Maj. Gen. Juancho Sabban said in a statement.

Sulani was shot at least 9 times and died at a military hospital. Sulani was able to fire back and fought his attackers before government reinforcements arrived.

The Abu Sayyaf has been blamed for previous attacks on civilian and military targets in Sulu. (Mindanao Examiner)

Fierce Fighting Erupts In Basilan Island

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Philippine Army Recalls Troops In Sulu

Policemen, armed with assault rifle, man the traffic at a busy road in the town of Jolo in the southern Philippine province of Sulu. Hundreds of soldiers have been recalled by the Army and will be redeployed in Mindanao Island as part of a new strategy to combat insurgency. Marines have taken over the role of the Army in counter-insurgency in Sulu and also in the province of Tawi-Tawi and Basilan, all part of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Apr. 15, 2008) – The Philippine Army recalled hundreds of soldiers from the southern province of Sulu as part of the military’s new deployment strategy, officials said Tuesday.

In January, thousands of army soldiers were also pulled out from Sulu and deployed to other provinces in Mindanao Island. The Philippine Marines will solely take over the security operation in Sulu, about 950 kilometers from Manila.

Officials said the latest pull out of soldiers, which began Sunday, will realign marine and army forces in the Sulu Archipelago and Mindanao. Marine soldiers are also in Tawi-Tawi and Basilan provinces.

The army troops would be deployed in central Mindanao, a stronghold of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, the country’s largest Muslim separatist rebel group.

Ten of thousands of troops were sent to Sulu the past years to fight the Abu Sayyaf group tied to al-Qaeda of Usama bin Laden and the Indonesian militant Jemaah Islamiya.

But many of the Abu Sayyaf’s known leaders had either been killed or captured and the group has dwindled over the past decade from more than a thousand fighters to about 200. And the group is fragmented and without a leader after Army special forces killed Khadaffy Janjalani, its chieftain, in a firefight in September 2006.

Janjalani, a former government spy, took over from his elder brother, Abubakar Abdurajak Janjalani after the Libyan firebrand was killed in a gun battle with policemen in Basilan Island in December 1998.

Marine Brigadier General Juancho Sabban, Sulu military chief, said there is no need to maintain a huge number of soldiers in the province because the troops have already accomplished their earlier missions with the killings and capture of many Abu Sayyaf members.

“Sulu needs fewer troops since the threat problems have remarkably dropped and the threat level is now more manageable,” Sabban said.

He attributed the success of the military operations to effective intelligence and through various development and humanitarian projects in partnership with the Sulu provincial government.

Sulu Governor Sakur Tan is active in humanitarian mission and has lined up various development projects in mostly poor areas in the province’s 19 towns. Just last month, Tan funded the construction of at least 50 bamboo houses, worth over P26,500 each, for poor Badjao families in Tandu Bato in Luuk town.

The project called “Operation Kandili – Preserving a unique culture through providing homes for the Badjao,” is a partnership between the Philippine Marines and the Sulu provincial government, Tan said.

At least 50 more bamboo houses in Luuk town will be constructed soon. Tan also donated a basketball court in the village and pledged to release more funding for education and poverty alleviation programs.

”We have been funding and implementing a lot of projects in Sulu and all these are part of our peace and development programs. We want a culture of peace and this can be achieved through education and basic infrastructure projects and with the participation of course, of the people themselves,” he said

Sabban said the Abu Sayyaf is now on the run because of the sustained military campaign and the lack of support from Muslims in Sulu.

“Intelligence reports disclosed that the Abu Sayyaf group is experiencing leadership and funding problems which barred them from launching more major attacks. The ASG is losing its appeal and influence. Even within their ranks, followers are no longer convinced of the groups’ aspirations.” “Nevertheless, the remaining soldiers will continue to uphold the utmost level of vigilance and defense. They will stand tall and unfazed in confronting terrorism and defeat it,” Sabban said.

Last week, policemen and soldiers rescued a local trader, Rosalie Lao, kidnapped by the Abu Sayyaf in Jolo town in January, after a brief running gun battle. Lao was the last Abu Sayyaf hostage in Sulu.

Six local traders selling gasoline were also kidnapped last week, but freed later after their families paid ransom. Police said the old debt triggered the kidnapping of the men.

Authorities have blamed the MILF and the Abu Sayyaf in the twin bombings over the weekend in Zamboanga City. Although no one was killed or injured in the attacks, the military appealed to citizens to stay vigilant.

“We appeal to the public to remain calm and we assure the situation is under control and now back to normal. Police and military have intensified its efforts to keep the city and other places secure and safe from terrorist threats,” said Air Force Major Gamal Hayudini, commander of the military’ 4th Civil Relations Group. (Mindanao Examiner)

AFP, Battling A New War In Southern Philippines

Badjao natives pose with Marine Generals Juancho Sabban and Cesario Atienza and Sulu Governor Sakur Tan and his deputy Nur Anna Sahidulla, center, and other provincial officials and behind them the newly-constructed bamboo houses, a project called "Operation Kandili." Badjao children listen to a marine soldier who doubles as a teacher in Sulu province as Gov. Sakur Tan and his deputy Nur Anna Sahidulla inspected a school built by soldiers in Luuk town. (Mindanao Examiner Photos)

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Mar. 26, 2007) – From rustic M16 automatic rifles and smoke grenades, now Filipino marines are arming themselves for a new kind of war - a battle of wits and patience -- to win over minds and hearts of Muslims in the southern island of Sulu, where poverty breeds terrorism.

Now marines in this island of more than half a million Muslims are armed not with weapons, but chalks and pencils, battling to save poor children and educate them to win the war against illiteracy.

Soldiers have not only built schools for the poor in Sulu province, but teach the children basic elementary education. Called the "School for Badjao Adults and Out-Of-School Youth," dozens of mostly poor children who have not held a single book in their life, now are reciting the alphabets and slowly learning how to read.

"Our mission is to help the children in Sulu, our children," one soldier told the Mindanao Examiner and pointed on a signboard outside the school that reads: "Mission…To provide literacy program for the Badjao out-of-school youth that will qualify them for the formal elementary education of the Department of Education as well as basic education for the Badjao adults to be enable them to communicate and exercise their rights, conduct themselves with dignity and courage, and enable them to perform their civic duties as Filipino citizens."

Brig. Gen. Cesario Atienza, commander of the 2nd Marine Brigade in Sulu, said they are also collecting second-hand books for the children.

"The children now go to school clean everyday and eager to learn more and this is basic education and their teachers are the soldiers who patiently held them achieve their dreams and that is to learn how to read and write."

“The soldiers not only teach the children, they have also embarked on various skills training program to help poor families start their own small business – from mat weaving to rice cake baking and other sustainable livelihood projects," he said in a separate interview.

Atienza said soldiers also finished at least 50 bamboo houses, worth over P26,500 each, for poor Badjao families in Tandu Bato in Luuk town. He said Sulu Gov. Sakur Tan funded the project called "Operation Kandili – Preserving a unique culture through providing homes for the Badjao."

He said they will construct at least 50 more houses in Luuk town. They have also finished a basketball court. Tan inspected the projects on Monday and promised to release more funding for education and poverty alleviation programs drawing wild cheers and applause from more than 100 Badjao natives chanting his name.

"He is a good man, a good leader and without him, there will be no beautiful bamboo houses like those. Now, many Badjao families will no longer live by the sea or on those dilapidated thatched houses you see over there on your left," said Kasim, a 29-year old Badjao fisherman, pointing to a row of old bamboo houses on stilts.

Tan said more development projects are underway in Sulu. "We have been funding and implementing a lot of projects in Sulu and all these are part of our peace and development programs. We want a culture of peace and this can be achieved through education and basic infrastructure projects and with the participation of course, of the people themselves," he said.

Marine Brig. Gen. Juancho Sabban, commander of military forces in Sulu, told soldiers during an inspection Monday to work hard to achieve peace in the province by engaging in humanitarian missions to win hearts and minds of the locals.

"We must put an end to the cycle of violence in Sulu, to the threats of the Abu Sayyaf and other terror groups and we can achieve this not by the barrel of the gun, but by winning hearts and minds of the people. With the people on our side, we will surely win the war on terror," he said.

The number of Abu Sayyaf militants in Sulu have drastically dwindled over the past years after many of its known leaders were either killed or captured. From over 1,000 a decade ago, authorities estimate the number of Abu Sayyaf gunmen in the province to be around 200 or less. (Mindanao Examiner)

Thousands Of Infantrymen Leave Sulu Province

Army soldiers patrol a highway in the southern Philippine province of Sulu. Thousands of army soldiers begin pulling out in Sulu and would be redeployed to Lanao del Norte province as part of a new strategy to combat terrorism, officials say. The Philippine Marines will take over the Army in Sulu, about 950 kilometers south of Manila. (Mindanao Examiner Photo Service)

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Jan. 21, 2008) – Thousands of Philippine Army troops have began withdrawing from the southern province of Sulu, where Marines have put up a permanent base as part of a new deployment strategy to effectively combat terrorism, officials said on Monday.

Officials said the 104th Infantry Brigade based in Sulu will be redeployed in the province of Lanao del Norte. The Philippine Marines will solely take over the security operation in Sulu, about 950 kilometers south of Manila.

Philippine Marines have also taken over the Army in Tawi-Tawi province and have been deployed in Zamboanga City where they already established a base.

“The redeployment of army soldiers is part a new concept which will be more effective in addressing various threats, from terrorism to guarding our long coastlines.”

“The Navy and Marines will take care of Sulu and Tawi-Tawi as part of this new Fleet Marine Concept and our the infantry forces will be redeployed to Lanao del Norte province and other areas in the region,” Army Major General Nehemias Pajarito, commander of the First Infantry Division, told the Mindanao Examiner.

Pajarito did not say how many army soldiers were involved in the redeployment of forces, but several thousands of infantrymen are currently stationed in Sulu.

The Army was largely credited for the killing of Abu Sayyaf chieftain Khadaffy Janjalani in Sulu and several senior leaders of the terrorist group tied to al-Qaeda and Jemaah Islamiya the past years. (Mindanao Examiner)

Blast Kills 1, Injures 2 In Sulu Province

A government soldier, Marine Sgt. Cyril Padenilla, 32, wounded in a grenade blast Sunday, Dec. 16, 2007 lies unconscious at the Sulu Provincial Hospital. A woman, Janet Mansog, 32, is also wounded in the blast that killed a military informant, Arnold Cataylo. (Mindanao Examiner Photo/Nickee Butlangan)

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Dec. 16, 2007) – One person was killed and three others wounded, including a government soldier, when a grenade exploded late Sunday in the southern Philippine province of Sulu, police said.

Police said the killed man, Arnold Cataylo, 25, was toying with the grenade when it exploded in the village of San Raymundo in Jolo town.

A soldier, Sgt. Cyril Padenilla, 32, assigned with the Philippine Marines, and a woman, Janet Mansog, 32, were wounded in the blast at around 8.30 p.m.

Police said Cataylo was instantly killed while the wounded were rushed to the Sulu provincial hospital.

Superintendent Hakam Pae, the acting provincial police chief, said the victims were apparently drunk. It was not immediately known who owned the grenade, but Cataylo was allegedly a military informant.

Two other women identified only on their first names, Marimar and Gemma, who were with the group fled after the explosion, Pae said.

“We are still investigating the case. Policemen recovered two automatic pistols near the blast site,” he told the Mindanao Examiner.

Policemen were searching for the two women to shed light on the investigations. Pae said the blast was an isolated incident.

Liquor and wines are strictly prohibited in the largely Muslim province, but some convenience stores still sell them mostly to Christian soldiers stationed in the province, about 950 kilometers south of Manila.

Bars and karaoke clubs run by Christians also sprouted near military bases in Jolo.

(Nickee Butlangan)

Marines Finish Air-To-Ground Ops In Southern Philippines

In this photos released by the Joint Special Operations Task Force-Philippines show members of the Philippine Marines and the Philippine Air Force in action during the ATOG operations seminar in Sulu province in southern Philippines.

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Oct. 09, 2007) – At least 40 Filipino Marines attended a three-day seminar on Air-To-Ground Operations in Sulu province in southern Philippines.

The Philippine forward air controllers, assigned to the Philippine Air Force Mobile Training Team, provided the seminar for the battle-hardened soldiers, who belong to the 3rd and 11th Marine Battalion Landing Teams held in Tanduh Bato from October 4 to 6.

The seminar is designed to improve the Marines inter-operability with the Air Force. This covers close air support, heli-borne assault, communications link-up, marshalling aircraft for medical evacuation and other air support operations.

“The Brigade conceptualized this enhancement training in order to improve our capability in combat. This is to ensure that whenever we request air support, our men in the field are correctly communicating with our P.A.F. counterparts,” Lt. Col. Antonieto Ga, 2nd MBLT deputy commander, said in a statement released on Monday.

Two Marine Officers Sacked Over Basilan Clash

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2 Soldiers Killed In Abu Sayyaf Ambush In South RP

ZAMBOANGA CITY (Mindanao Examiner / 17 Jul) – Suspected Abu Sayyaf militants attacked a Philippine marine patrol Tuesday morning, killing two soldiers and wounding another in the southern island of Jolo, officials said.

Officials said the attackers, numbering about 50, ambushed the soldiers while they were patrolling the village of Tugas in Patikul town at around 6 a.m. The ambushers also carted two automatic rifles from the slain soldiers.

Last week, Abu Sayyaf and Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels also ambushed marine soldiers in nearby Basilan island and killed 14 of them – ten beheaded.

‘There is an ongoing operation in Jolo against the Abu Sayyaf terrorists responsible for this attack,” Army Maj. Eugene Batara, a regional military spokesman, told the Mindanao Examiner.

Last month, the US Pacific commander, Adm. Timothy Keating, in a surprised visit in Jolo island, inspected a captured Abu Sayyaf mountain base in Tugas village in Patikul town, where the soldiers were ambushed.

Troops were pursuing Abu Sayyaf militants tied to al-Qaeda terror network and Jemaah Islamiya bombers on the island, about 950 km south of Manila.

The US is helping the Philippines defeat terrorism and have deployed hundreds of American troops in Jolo and other parts of restive southern region.

Army Lt. Gen. Eugenio Cedo, Western Mindanao Command chief, was quoted Monday by The Australian as saying that his group is close to capturing Jemaah Islamiya explosives expert Dulmatin hiding in Jolo island after an informant contacted the military offering to surrender the 2002 Bali bombing mastermind.

Security forces are also tracking down another Bali bomber Umar Patek, who is being coddled by the Abu Sayyaf group, in Jolo.

Cedo said he received a message last week from a member of the former rebel group, Moro National Liberation Front, who promised he could lead government soldiers to Dulmatin’s hideout in Jolo island, about 950 km south of Manila. “I think we have a good prospect of finding him,” Cedo said. “I received this message saying Dulmatin would be surrendered to us.”

He said the informant had even pinpointed the precise location of Dulmatin’s lair in Jolo island.
The US has offered a $10 million bounty for Dulmatin’s capture and $1 million for Patek’s head.

The Bali bombings killed 202 people, mostly foreigners, including 88 Australian holiday-makers.

The Philippine military, backed by US intelligence, mounted new offensive early this month against the Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiya terrorists. In many instances, villagers reported seeing heavily armed US soldiers in armored vehicles, with Filipino troops.

The offensive, codenamed Oplan: Ultimatum 2, is aimed at capturing - dead or alive - leaders of the Abu Sayyaf and the two Jemaah Islamiya bombers. Indonesian authorities also tagged the Jemaah Islamiya as behind the 2003 JW Marriott hotel car bombing that killed a dozen people and wounded over 150 others.

The US military provides technical intelligence to local troops because they are not allowed to participate in combat operation against the Abu Sayyaf or Jemaah Islamiya, both included in the US terror list. (Mindanao Examiner)

Palpak Na U.S. Mortar, Iimbestigahan Ng Marines

MANILA (Mindanao Examiner / 13 Jul) - Bubusisiin ng Philippine Marines ang naging pagpalpak ng ilang mortar na umano'y galing sa Estados Unidos habang nasa kasagsagan ng pakikipaggiyera sa mga miyembro ng Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) sa Basilan.

Sinabi ni Philippine Marine Corps spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Ariel Caculitan na bagamat prayoridad nito ang pagtutugis sa mga sumalakay sa tropa nito, mahalaga ring maungkat ang sanhi ng pumalyang mortar ng militar.

"On the level of the AFP, this will be addressed and our primary concern is to ensure that our weapons are working properly and that we are efficient in combat," ani Caculitan.

Magugunitang labing-apat na Marines, kung saan ay sampu ang napugutan ng ulo, sa naturang engkuwentro.

Inihayag naman ni AFP spokesman Lt. Col. Bartolome Bacarro na batay sa lot number ng mga pumalpak na mortar, natunton na nagbuhat ito sa Estados Unidos, ngunit hindi niya matiyak kung binili ito o donasyon lamang.

Sinabi ni Bacarro na posible ngang hindi pumutok ang isang mortar ngunit imposible nang makailang ulit ang pagpalya nito.

Zero-defect aniya ang nasabing mga mortar subalit posibleng nagkaroon ito ng damage nang dalhin ng mga sundalo sa field na bukas sa ibat-ibang epekto ng kalikasan.

Ang bawat mortar ay nagkakahalagang $134 kada isa at may fuse na aabot naman sa $150.
Samantala, inatasan na ng Pangulong Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo si Acting Defense Secretary at National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales na madaliin ang full implementation ng modernisasyon ng Armed Forces of the Philippines.

Ayon kay Gonzales, pinag-aaralan na nito kung paano maipatutupad at mapopondohan ng mabilis ang pagbili ng mga makabagong kagamitang pandigma ang militar.

Ayaw ng kalihim na gumamit pa ang mga sundalo ng mga segunda-mano o donasyong gamit mula sa ibang bansa sapagkat buhay ng mga tauhan ng AFP ang nakataya o nalalagay sa alanganin.

Ipinag-utos rin ni AFP chief General Hermogenes Esperon Jr., ang suspensyon sa paggamit ng libu-libong rounds ng 81-milimeter mortar nito habang iniimbestigahan ang pagkakapalya ng mga bala sa kasagsagan ng giyera ng Philippine Marines sa MILF.

Binigyang ni Esperon ang investigating team sa pamumuno ni Brigadier General Henry Galarpe, deputy Armed Forces Inspector General, ng pitong araw upang tapusin ang pagbusisi nito maging sa mga nangyari sa engkuwentro. (Juley Reyes)

President Arroyo Orders Troops To Hunt Rebels In Troubled South

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RP Troops Kill 2 Sayyaf Terrorists

ZAMBOANGA CITY (Mindanao Examiner / 05 Jul) – Two Abu Sayyaf militants, whose group is tied to al-Qaeda terror network, were killed in clash with security forces on Thursday in the southern Philippine island of Basilan, officials said.

Officials said one of those killed was believed to be a local commander. The fighting erupted in the village of Bohe Bessey in Akbar town after marine troops clashed with about 30 Abu Sayyaf gunmen.

“Two Abu Sayyafs are killed and one of them was a local terrorist leader Panjang Mohammad,” Colonel Ramiro Alivio, commander of the 1st Marine Brigade on the island, told the regional newspaper, the Mindanao Examiner.

Colonel Alivio said troops recovered three Abu Sayyaf rifles in the village. There were no reports of military casualties, he said.

The operation, he said, was part of campaign to rid the island of Abu Sayyaf terrorists.

Army Lieutenant General Eugenio Cedo, a regional military chief, said they have mounted a new offensive dubbed Oplan: Ultimatum on July 1 against the Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiya on nearby island of Jolo in the Sulu Archipelago.

The offensive is aimed at capturing senior Abu Sayyaf leaders headed by its Yasser Igasan and two Jemaah Islamiya terrorists Dulmatin and Umar Patek, tagged as behind the deadly Bali bombings in 2002 that killed 202 people.

Jolo island, about 950 kms south of Manila, is being used as a springboard for terror attacks by the Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiya, blamed by Filipino authorities for the spate of bombings on the troubled, but mineral-rich region of Mindanao. (Juley Reyes and Juan Magtanggol)

RP, US Marines Exchange Mementos, Plaques

Philippine Marines 1st Brigade commander, the decorated Col. Ramiro Alivio with Lt. Col. Imelda Dalupang receive and exchange plaques and mementos with United States Navy Capt. Michael McNamara in Basilan island, where Filipino and American troops are participating in a joint amphibious training called CARAT 2007.

CARAT, a regularly scheduled series of bilateral military training exercises with several Association of Southeast Asian Nation (ASEAN) countries, is designed to enhance interoperability of the U.S. sea services, and those of friends and allies throughout the region in a variety of mission areas of mutual benefit.

The CARAT task group is made up of the guided-missile cruiser USS Vincennes (CG 49), dock landing ship USS Harpers Ferry (LSD 49), guided-missile frigate USS Curts (FFG 38), rescue and salvage ship USS Safeguard (ARS 50) and the 400-strong MAGTF, Landing Force Carat, embarked in the task group.

During the various phases of CARAT, which include exercises with the Philippines, Thailand, Brunei, Singapore and Malaysia, training is scheduled in skill areas such as at-sea maneuvering and communications, command and control, diving and salvage, and amphibious operations.

The specific focus of training and the specific CARAT task group elements participating in each exercise phase will vary based on training goals.

A variety of seminars are also scheduled, as are social events that give exercise participants a chance to develop personal relationships so critical to combined operations. Sailors and Marines take time during each CARAT phase to participate in civil affairs, medical and community service projects.

A joint medical, dental, veterinary and engineering civic action program was conducted in the villages of Kaumpurnah and Lower Mahayahay in Basilan this week.

Photo: Military Accomplishments

The 1st Marine Battalion Landing Team-8 headed by Col.Ramiro Alivio (center) congratulates his men under Lt. Col Felix Almadrones in Basilan island in the southern Philippines where soldiers seize assorted weapons and munitions, including a 50-caliber machine gun after a clash with Abu Sayyaf gunmen led by Abdul Karim Hamjali.

And the Army’s 54th Engineering Brigade commander, Brig. Gen. Jorge Nomos hands over the symbolic key of the completed JMAT project to Armed Forces Chief of Staff Hermogenes Esperon Jr. The construction of "Bantay Ceasefire" and 6th Infantry Division Peacekeeping force facilities is in coordination with the International Monitoring Team (IMT) and Coordinating Committee on Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH) in Shariff Aguak town in Maguindanao province. (All captions by Mark Navales and Merlyn Manos/Mindanao Examiner Photo Service)