Army gives green light for N.Cot, Maguindanao IDPs to return home

PIKIT, North
Cotabato – The military has here given the go signal for the
internally displaced persons (IDPs) to return home after the Army and the Moro
Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) cleared the village of Kabasalan and nearby
communities.

These
villages, occupied by outlawed Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) for
more than a week, were cleared of lawless elements and unexploded bombs left by
fleeing bandits.

More than 500
soldiers from the 602nd Infantry Brigade and MILF fighters jointly
conducted the clearing operations.

A deafening
silence greeted government troops and Moro guerrillas as they entered the
village of Kabasalan, the last village of Pikit, North Cotabato in the borders
with Maguidanao in the heartland of Liguasan marshland.

At least 25
houses made of semi-concrete materials welcomed the government forces. These were torched by BIFF before moving
toward the marshland, Army and MILF believed.

They used to
be at war and shooting each other on site, but now government forces and MILF
rebels jointly moved in the village to pave the way for the return of IDPs.

A tour by Army
officials, local leaders and MILF leaders, along with the media showed the area
was indeed a battle ground where newly-dig fox holes and bunkers abound.

Returning
families scour the burned houses, looking for something to salvage.

Army bomb
experts also conducted clearing operations to free the village of unexploded
bombs left by fleeing bandits.

MILF and
soldiers also found what looked like a mass grave of suspected BIFF fighters,
an indication the BIFF suffered fatalities during Army artillery offensive and
bury them according to Islamic rites.

As the local
officials, MILF and Army officials, led by 7th Infantry Battalion
commander Lt. Colonel Audie Edralin, left the villages, they met along the road
hundreds of civilians returning home with their valuables and work animals in
tow.

We’re tired
in evacuation centers, I hope this will be our last evacuation,” Bai Kong Adil,
an evacuee, told reporters.

WE have
cleared the area, it is now safe for the civilians to return home, I deployed a
team of soldiers in the area to secure the civilians,” Edralin said.

I have talked
to the MILF leaders, they will help the Army in securing their communities,”
Dulla Sultan, acting mayor of Pikit, said.

Jabib Guiabar,
local MILF spokesperson, said his group will coordinate with the coordinating
committee on the cessation of hostilities how to secure the civilians from BIFF
bandits.

Tahira
Kalantongan, Pikit disaster chief, said the returning IDPs had pabaon” from
the local government unit composed of rice and other canned goods. (Ferdinandh
Cabrera)