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Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Troops seize 15 MILF camps
MANILA -- Thousands of troops backed by air and artillery fire have captured 15 Moro rebels' strongholds in the southern Philippines after five days of intense fighting, officials said Monday.
More than 272,000 villagers have also fled their homes due to the ongoing Mindanao conflict.
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Armed Forces Chief Alexander Yano said that government forces overran at least 15 camps of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels who are being pursued for their recent atrocities in Central Mindanao.
During Monday's press briefing in Camp Aguinaldo, Yano said these camps are actually co-located in communities, which according to him, had been fortified and defended by the rebels under MILF leaders Umbra Kato and Abdullah Saber "Bravo" Macapaar against possible military operations.
He said these camps of the 102nd and 105th Base Commands of the MILF had been seized by the operating troops for the past three days.
The military offensive against the marauding rebels began Monday last week after they staged attacks in Lanao del Norte Province.
At least 28 civilians, three soldiers - including incoming Task Force Tabak intelligence officer Angel Benitez - and a policeman have died in the clashes.
Camp Vietnam
The seized camps include Camp Vietnam in Maguindanao, which was captured by government forces last Friday.
Yano showed to the media pictures of the camp where a house of MILF commander Wahid Tundok - operations chief of Kato - is situated. It had, among others, a watchtower and sniper positions.
"We have cleared no less than 15 communities and camps. We have to take note that the camps we are referring to are not the conventional camps that we know of in the military. These are communities that are populated by the (MILF) warriors themselves, the fighters," said Yano.
He added: "These are all equipped with fortifications, barricades, trenches and bunkers, which only show that these are not ordinary civilian barangays or communities but they were converted into fortresses."
Yano, however, refused to say how many rebel camps the military intends to overrun, saying he is not that concerned about the seized camps.
He said they are pursuing personalities led by Kato and Macapaar, leader of the MILF's 105th and 102nd Base Commands, respectively.
"While we can occupy or seize MILF camps, that is more symbolic than otherwise but what we are running here after are the ones responsible for the atrocities not the lands or the communities. Our mission is geared more or directed against the personalities who are responsible for the hostilities or the attacks," said Yano.
Peace talks
The government has rejected a call by rebel chieftain Al Haj Murad for an immediate halt to the government assaults, which he warned could cause Malaysian-brokered peace talks to collapse and escalate violence in the south.
Officials asked the 11,000-strong rebel front to surrender commanders Kato, Macapaar, and Aleem Sulaiman Pangalian, who have been accused of leading the attacks against civilians, including the burning and looting of homes and farms a week ago that left 37 people shot or hacked to death.
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said her troops were not at war with the MILF and that they were only targeting three hard-line commanders and their men, who could create trouble even if a peace pact is signed. She said her government would pursue peace talks with the rebel group.
"The campaign against them is intended to remove the obstacles to the peace process," Arroyo said Sunday.
Murad said Saturday that his group would never surrender the commanders, who have denied the allegations. He conceded that they could be investigated by Malaysian-led ceasefire monitors.
MILF resistance
The military chief meanwhile revealed that the MILF resistance against the pursuing troops is now waning compared to last week. Clashes that are reported on the ground are mere "sporadic," he said.
"In the last 24 hours, we have observed that their resistance had lessened... very much lesser than the resistance that we have encountered in the last 48 hours. As of now, there are sporadic harassments but these are very much lesser than the first two days," said Yano.
He also said the military has received raw information that other MILF base are attempting to reinforce or have actually reinforced the group of Kato and Macapaar.
"But as I have made it clear even to our directives to our forces, anybody who joins the group of Umbra Kato and Macapaar definitely will be subjected to the same treatment, considering that on the ground, for practical reason, you cannot distinguish one from the other. I think they will be equally liable if they join the group who are considered criminals," he said.
As of Monday afternoon, the military reported that at least 22 government troopers, including five militiamen, died and 66 others were injured in the offensive.
Yano said the military casualty is "very minimal because we have very specific instructions not only to take due caution but to apply whatever fire support is available for the ground troops before their advance."
Hundred dead
Brigadier General Jorge Segovia, the military's spokesman for the conflict, supported the earlier statement of 6th Infantry Division spokesman Julieto Ando that the MILF could have suffered about a hundred dead in the continuing offensives.
"The figures that are coming out, the 100 earlier revealed, I think is not very far from the real score on the ground. Around a hundred I think, that is not very far from what is reality. Our artillery and our Air Force assets have been hitting their targets," said Segovia.
Segovia implied that troops that have captured MILF camps have seen mangled rebel bodies. "There have been clear evidence on the ground that have been found by our forces but of course some of these are not very pleasing to appreciate so we would rather not show them to the public," he said.
"Our forces on the ground have found out after overrunning some of these positions that our Air Force assets have scored direct hits even in machine gun positions and where the group conglomerated, there are clear signs of dead and wounded," he added.
Segovia, however, could not say as to the number of MILF bodies so far recovered by the troops. "As our chief of staff has said, we are more focused now on the accomplishment of the mission rather than making an inventory of the casualties," he said. (VR/Sunnex/With AP)
Related stories:
Troops capture 2 MILF satellite camps
Army overruns MILF camp in Maasim
Arroyo clarifies military operations vs MILF
Vidal orders 'Oratio Imperata' for peace in Mindanao
For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star Baguio. (August 26, 2008 issue)
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