SIX people--two Abu Sayyaf bandits and four soldiers--were killed while 17 others wounded in an intense firefight in the hinterlands of Sulu, the military disclosed Saturday, June 6, 2020.

Major Arvin John Encinas, Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom) spokesperson, disclosed the firefight broke out around 8:25 a.m. Friday in Sitio Lagaron in Kan-Ague village, Patikul, Sulu.

Encinas said the firefight ensued as the troops encountered around 40 Abu Sayyaf bandits led by Hatib Hajan Sawadjaan while conducting combat operation in Sitio Lagaron in Kan Ague, Patikul.

Encinas said the firefight lasted for about 40 minutes that resulted in the death of two Abu Sayyaf bandits and four soldiers and injured 17 others.

Encinas did not release the identities of the slain and the 17 wounded soldiers except to say they belong to the Army’s 6th Special Forces Battalion.

He said that seven of the 17 wounded soldiers have been airlifted and taken to the hospitals in this city.

Encinas said the Abu Sayyaf bandits scampered towards a southeast direction.

He said two followers of Sawadjaan were killed based on human intelligence report the troops have received.

Encinas said a pursuit operation was launched against the Sawadjaan-led bandit group.

Military operations continue in the province of Sulu in a bid to rescue the remaining hostages in the hands of the Abu Sayyaf bandits.

The Sulu-based Abu Sayyaf bandits are still holding captives five Indonesian fishermen they seized off the waters of Lahad Datu, Sabah, Malaysia on January 17, 2020. (SunStar Zamboanga)