(UPDATE) IED blast kills Maguindanao town treasurer, 3 others - Army
Local News • 15:44 PM Wed Feb 17, 2016
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By:
Ferdinandh Cabrera and Edwin Fernandez
The ill-fated Mitsubishi Dellica of Datu Salibo municipal treasurer along a roadside in Datu Saudi Ampatuan, Maguindanao. (Ferdinandh Cabrera)
DATU SALIBO,
Maguindanao –- The town treasurer of this town, his son and two
others were killed when suspected lawless group set off a roadside improvised
bomb in a Maguindanao highway Tuesday night, the military here said.
Killed
on the spot were Norodin Macabangen, municipal treasurer of Datu Salibo
treasurer, his son Kenneth Ken-Ken” Macabangen, Alex Alpas and Bensar Agapay.
Lt. Colonel
Warlito Limet, 2nd Mechanized Infantry Battalion commander, said the
victims were on board a Mitsubishi Delica van with license plate RDX-928
heading toward Datu Salibo town proper when the IED fashioned from 81 mm mortar
and mobile phone as triggering device, went off at 10:30 p.m.
Limet said the
Macabangen and five other van passengers decided to return to Datu Saudi
Ampatuan because of intense fighting between government forces and Bangsamoro
Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) in Barangay Tee and Barangay Sambolawan, all in
Datu Salibo.
They were
heading back to Datu Saudi Ampatuan when the explosion occurred and hit the
passing van,” Limet said, adding two others were rushed by soldiers to the
Cotabato Regional Medical Center. Akala siguro ng mga suspect na yong sasakyan ay sa military kasi itim din (Maybe the vehicle was mistaken as a military truck), Senior Insp. Abdulbasit Kulot, Datu Saudi Ampatuan town police chief, Limet said the bombing
was part of the skirmishes between lawless group and government forces in Datu
Salibo.
The IED could
be meant for military vehicles,” he said.
Unfortunately, civilians were killed.”
At 4 a.m.
Tuesday, about 50 BIFF fighters harassed the Army detachments in Barangay Tee
and Barangay Sambolawan, both in Datu Salibo, which led to early morning fire fight.
Two MG-520
attack helicopters pounded the BIFF for about an hour as the fighting
intensified, Capt. Joann Petinglay, 6th Infantry Division
spokesperson.
Petinglay said
the number of BIFF was rising as there were reinforcements from nearby towns.
She could not
say how many BIFF were killed or injured in the air strikes and ground attacks.
Petinglay
admitted government forces suffered one killed in action and six injured,
including an Army company commander.
On February 5,
the BIFF attacked a government dredging project in Barangay Butalo, Datu
Salibo, Maguindanao. Since then,
sporadic skirmishes had been on-going.
We cannot
understand why the BIFF was against a development project that will protect the
people of Datu Salibo, including the BIFF, from floods when rainy season coems,”
Petinglay said.
BIFF
spokesperson Abu Misri Mama said five soldiers were killed Tuesday and three armoured
personnel carriers (APCs) were destroyed and disabled, a claim denied by
Petinglay.
Three APCs
were hit but not destroyed, our troops are still using these military vehicles,”
Petinglay said. We have no casualty on Tuesday,” she added.
The two-week
sporadic skirmishes between government forces and BIFF have also displaced more
than 2,500 families in Datu Salibo’s five adjoining villages where the fighting
was concentrated. sand//fbcdn-sphotos-a-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpt1/v/t1.0-9/12687847_10207223050968137_614902221821052075_n.jpg?oh=1bcf2664db168d986d963e5538138b3fandampoe=572FFCFCandamp__gda__=1462723964_46ecd0ce3e98bb7354e79b47efafcd79 (Police shut down the highway linking Datu Saudi Ampatuan to Datu Salibo, Maguindanao as Army-BIFF fighting was brewing Tuesday morning, Feb. 16, 2015 - Photo courtesy ofBobby Benito )