Saturday, August 23, 2008 Fresh troops land in Maasim town By Edwin G. Espejo Contributor
GENERAL SANTOS CITY -- A battalion of soldiers has been deployed in Maasim, Sarangani just two days after a band of Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels launched a dawn attack at the town's center Monday.
Brigadier General Gaudencio Pangilinan, chief of the Army's 1002nd Brigade, said the arrival of soldiers belonging to the 73rd Infantry Battalion Wednesday afternoon was part of the routine "repositioning" of government troops.
He though conceded that they were reinforcement troops, as tension remains high in the western part of Sarangani province.
Two persons were killed and another was wounded when MILF rebels tried to overrun the town police office in Maasim Monday morning.
The rebels fired several rounds of rocket-propelled grenades and peppered the town hall with rifle fire.
The attackers also simultaneously harassed a detachment of government militiamen in the nearby village of Kablacan.
Alert policemen on duty, however, repulsed the attackers who fled towards the mountainous area of Maasim after a fierce 30-minute gun battle.
Military sources said the MILF rebels were led by Alo Binago and a certain Sadabao.
The rebels are believed to have fled towards Palimbang in Sultan Kudarat and towards Lake Sebu in South Cotabato.
Lieutenant Colonel Alex Ambal, chief of the newly arrived 73rd Battalion that came from Sto. Tomas in Davao del Norte Province, said his orders were to secure Maasim and pursue the attackers.
Sarangani Governor Miguel Rene Dominguez earlier described the attack as an act of "brazenness and treachery."
He ordered police authorities and the military to launch pursuit operations against the MILF rebels even as he appealed to residents in province to remain calm.
The governor also appealed to refrain from passing unverified text messages that would increase tension and further inflame confusion and fear.
With the arrival of soldiers belonging to the 73rd IB, there are now three battalions under the command of the 1002nd Brigade.
The 1002nd Brigade covers the whole of Sarangani, South Cotabato, General Santos City and portions of Davao del Sur and Sultan Kudarat.
The other battalions are the 39th IB and the 27th IB.
In addition, the Philippine Army is also beefed up by contingents of soldiers from the Light Armor Brigade and Joint Task Force Gensan.
Brigadier General Pangilinan said the 73rd IB is actually a replacement for the 66th IB that was earlier pulled out from Malapatan, also in Sarangani, and was deployed in Compostela Valley.
