MILF to probe if members behind Basilan ambush

BASILAN, Philippines – The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) has announced an investigation into the ambush that took place on Saturday afternoon, August 12, in Barangay Ulitan, Ungkaya Pukan town, Basilan, which resulted in the deaths of two soldiers and injuries to seven others.

Hadji Samad Ahaddin, chairman of the MILF’s Ad Hoc Joint Action Group-Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (AHJAG-CCCH) in Basilan, said they will determine whether MILF members were involved in the ambush.

He said that if any of their members were found to be involved, they would be held accountable for violating the agreement between the government and the MILF.

On Monday, August 14, one of the wounded soldiers, Corporal Abdurafic Akalun, passed away in a hospital and was immediately laid to rest following Muslim tradition.

Akalun was a member of the Joint Peace and Security Team (JPST), which was ambushed by an armed group in the village of Ulitan, along with eight other soldiers.

One of the soldiers was immediately killed during the ambush.

The injured soldiers were rushed to the Camp Navarro General Hospital of the Western Mindanao Command in Zamboanga City.

Soldiers from the Army’s 64th Infantry Battalion and JPST members were dispatched to the village to conduct an assessment in preparation for a medical outreach program.

During their mission, they were attacked by an armed group and engaged in a five-minute firefight.

Brigadier General Alvin Luzon, commander of Joint Task Force Basilan, condemned what he described as “cowardice” on the part of the group responsible for the ambush. – Rappler.com