COTABATO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / May 31, 2009) – The Philippine Army on Sunday has blamed the country’s largest Muslim rebel group Moro Islamic Liberation Front as behind the spate of terrorism in the restive region of Mindanao.
Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Ponce, a spokesman for the 6th Infantry Division, said the MILF, whose peace talks with Manila collapsed last year, have been targeting civilians in central Mindanao.
Ponce said the rebels detonated an improvised explosive assembled from a 60mm mortar bomb late Saturday in front of cockpit arena in the village of Salman in Lebak town in Sultank Kudarat province.
He said although there were no reports of casualties, the attack proved the MILF is targeting civilians to sow terror.
“The signature of the improvised explosive device and how it was made is patterned to the handiwork of the special operations groups of the MILF. These groups are desperate that even civilian are not spared,” Ponce told the Mindanao Examiner.
The MILF has denied it was behind the attack.
On Friday, a bomb also destroyed a parked truck in Cotabato City, but there were no casualties. It was unknown if the MILF was behind the blast.
Peace negotiations collapsed in August after Manila reneged on a deal that would grant a separate homeland to some four million Muslims in Mindanao. The Supreme Court said the deal was unconstitutional. (Mindanao Examiner)
Showing posts with label Lebak Town. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lebak Town. Show all posts
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Troops pursue MILF raiders in Southern Philippines
COTABATO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / May 16, 2009) – Government forces on Saturday pursued dozens of Moro rebels who pillaged a small Christian community in the southern Philippines, officials said.
Officials said some 50 fighters of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front raided Friday the village of Basak in the town of Lebak in Sultan Kudarat province, burning houses and carting farm animals.
There were no reports of civilian casualties, but the rebels took 20 civilians and used them as shield against village guards and freed them at dawn Saturday, said Lt. Col. Jonathan Ponce, a regional army spokesman.
“There is a military operation. Troops are pursuing the rebels responsible for the raid,” he told the Mindanao Examiner.
The MILF did not give any statement about the raid, but the military said those who pillaged the village were under the 104th Base Command of the Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces.
Fighting between rebels and military forces continue in Maguindanao province near Sultan Kudarat. Peace talks between the rebels and the government collapsed last year after the failed signing of the Muslim homeland deal.
The MILF has been fighting the government the past decades for the establishment of a separate state for more than four million Muslims in Mindanao. (Mindanao Examiner)
Officials said some 50 fighters of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front raided Friday the village of Basak in the town of Lebak in Sultan Kudarat province, burning houses and carting farm animals.
There were no reports of civilian casualties, but the rebels took 20 civilians and used them as shield against village guards and freed them at dawn Saturday, said Lt. Col. Jonathan Ponce, a regional army spokesman.
“There is a military operation. Troops are pursuing the rebels responsible for the raid,” he told the Mindanao Examiner.
The MILF did not give any statement about the raid, but the military said those who pillaged the village were under the 104th Base Command of the Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces.
Fighting between rebels and military forces continue in Maguindanao province near Sultan Kudarat. Peace talks between the rebels and the government collapsed last year after the failed signing of the Muslim homeland deal.
The MILF has been fighting the government the past decades for the establishment of a separate state for more than four million Muslims in Mindanao. (Mindanao Examiner)
Sunday, April 26, 2009
1 killed, 3 injured in Mindanao bombing
COTABATO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Apr. 26, 2009) – One person was killed and three more injured in a bomb attack Sunday in Sultan Kudarat province in the troubled region of Mindanao in the southern Philippines, officials said.
Officials blamed the bombing in Lebak town to the country’s largest Muslim rebel group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) which is fighting for independence in Mindanao.
“One civilian was killed and two others are wounded in the MILF bombing,” Lt. Col. Jonathan Ponce, a regional army spokesman, told the Mindanao Examiner.
There was no immediate statement from the MILF, but the bombing coincided with the weeklong fighting between security and rebel forces in Maguindanao province where army soldiers killed at least 9 MILF members.
More than a dozen rebel camps and caches of weapons were also captured by troops, Ponce said.
The MILF has previously denied allegations linking them to the spate of bombings targeting civilians in the southern Philippines. “Who else would do such an act of terrorism,? These bombings were perpetrated by the MILF’s SOG under Basit Usman,” Ponce said, referring to the rebel’s special operations group headed by Abdul Basit Usman.
Usman, who was linked by the Philippine military to the Indonesian militant group Jemaah Islamiya, is also wanted by the United States for terrorism. And Washington has offered as much as $50,000 reward for his capture.
Peace talks between Manila and the MILF collapsed last year after the failed signing of the Muslim homeland deal that the Supreme Court ruled was unconstitutional. (Mindanao Examiner)
Officials blamed the bombing in Lebak town to the country’s largest Muslim rebel group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) which is fighting for independence in Mindanao.
“One civilian was killed and two others are wounded in the MILF bombing,” Lt. Col. Jonathan Ponce, a regional army spokesman, told the Mindanao Examiner.
There was no immediate statement from the MILF, but the bombing coincided with the weeklong fighting between security and rebel forces in Maguindanao province where army soldiers killed at least 9 MILF members.
More than a dozen rebel camps and caches of weapons were also captured by troops, Ponce said.
The MILF has previously denied allegations linking them to the spate of bombings targeting civilians in the southern Philippines. “Who else would do such an act of terrorism,? These bombings were perpetrated by the MILF’s SOG under Basit Usman,” Ponce said, referring to the rebel’s special operations group headed by Abdul Basit Usman.
Usman, who was linked by the Philippine military to the Indonesian militant group Jemaah Islamiya, is also wanted by the United States for terrorism. And Washington has offered as much as $50,000 reward for his capture.
Peace talks between Manila and the MILF collapsed last year after the failed signing of the Muslim homeland deal that the Supreme Court ruled was unconstitutional. (Mindanao Examiner)
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
2 wounded in new bombing in southern Philippines
MAGUINDANAO, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Apr. 22, 2009) – Two civilians were wounded after an improvised bomb exploded near a market in the southern Philippines and security officials linked the attack to the country’s largest Muslim rebel group, Moro Islamic Liberation Front.
Security officials said there were no casualties in the blast late Tuesday in the town of Lebak in Sultan Kudarat province. “A man carrying a back pack left a package in the area and minutes later it exploded,” Lt. Col. Jonathan Ponce, a regional army spokesman, told the Mindanao Examiner.
He said the MILF was behind the attack, although authorities are still investigating the motive of the bombing.
Ponce said the MILF’s special unit headed by Usman Basit, who is wanted by the United States for terrorism, was behind the attack. Basit was previously linked by the military to Indonesia’s Jemaah Islamiya terror group.
Washington also offered up to $50,000 bounty for Basit’s capture.
Ponce said just last week, government troops recovered a cache of weapons left behind by rebels in Maguindanao province. He said the rebels have launched a series of attacks in recent weeks in Mindanao.
The MILF, which is fighting for independence in the restive region, denied any involvement in the latest bombing. “Not us, we have no involvement in the attack. We are pro-people, we are for peace,” Eid Kabalu, a senior MILF leader, said in a separate interview.
Kabalu tied the blast to political feud. “The bombing could be the result of a political feud,” he said without further elaborating.
On Monday, two powerful explosions damaged the Agus Bridge in Lanao del Norte’s Iligan City. The bridge connects several provinces in Mindanao. The military also tagged the MILF as behind the attack.
Manila opened peace talks with the MILF in 2001, but the negotiations collapsed last year after government negotiators reneged on a deal that would grant some four million Muslims a separate homeland across more than 700 villages in Mindanao. The Supreme Court said the deal was unconstitutional. (Mindanao Examiner)
Security officials said there were no casualties in the blast late Tuesday in the town of Lebak in Sultan Kudarat province. “A man carrying a back pack left a package in the area and minutes later it exploded,” Lt. Col. Jonathan Ponce, a regional army spokesman, told the Mindanao Examiner.
He said the MILF was behind the attack, although authorities are still investigating the motive of the bombing.
Ponce said the MILF’s special unit headed by Usman Basit, who is wanted by the United States for terrorism, was behind the attack. Basit was previously linked by the military to Indonesia’s Jemaah Islamiya terror group.
Washington also offered up to $50,000 bounty for Basit’s capture.
Ponce said just last week, government troops recovered a cache of weapons left behind by rebels in Maguindanao province. He said the rebels have launched a series of attacks in recent weeks in Mindanao.
The MILF, which is fighting for independence in the restive region, denied any involvement in the latest bombing. “Not us, we have no involvement in the attack. We are pro-people, we are for peace,” Eid Kabalu, a senior MILF leader, said in a separate interview.
Kabalu tied the blast to political feud. “The bombing could be the result of a political feud,” he said without further elaborating.
On Monday, two powerful explosions damaged the Agus Bridge in Lanao del Norte’s Iligan City. The bridge connects several provinces in Mindanao. The military also tagged the MILF as behind the attack.
Manila opened peace talks with the MILF in 2001, but the negotiations collapsed last year after government negotiators reneged on a deal that would grant some four million Muslims a separate homeland across more than 700 villages in Mindanao. The Supreme Court said the deal was unconstitutional. (Mindanao Examiner)
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Wild Boar Hunter Dies From Own Bomb In Southern Philippines
MAGUINDANAO (Mindanao Examiner / 14 Jun) – A wild boar hunter died from injuries after an explosive he was trying set up detonated in the southern Philippines, police said on Thursday.
Police said the bomb, called “ping-pong,” use by many hunters to kill wild animals, detonated while the man, Francisco Nuria, was trying to set it up in the hinterland village of Santa Fe in Sultan Kudarat’s Lebak town on Tuesday.
The homemade explosive is called ping-pong because it resembles a ball use in table tennis. The bomb, although small, is usually packed with gunpowder and steel shrapnel that makes it even more deadly.
Police said the hunter died from severe shrapnel wounds in the body and loss of blood. Wild boar meat, a delicacy in the southern Philippines, is usually dried under the sun and then sold as much as $4 a kilogram, much higher than ordinary pork which costs only $2.50.
The use of ping-pong bomb is illegal in the Philippines, police said, but many hunters of wild animals use the explosive because it is easy and cheap to assemble.
The miniature bomb is also a favorite weapon among street gangs and fraternity wars in the country. (Romy Bwaga and Mark Navales)
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