57 Killed in Clash With Al Qaeda-Linked Militants in Philippines
MANILA, Philippines — Clashes between troops and suspected Al Qaeda-linked militants have killed at least 57 people and wounded 42 others on volatile southern Jolo island this week, the Philippine military said Friday.
The death toll included 25 soldiers and 27 militants killed Thursday when suspected Abu Sayyaf extremists ambushed a truck carrying troops headed to get supplies, then fought a running gunbattle with soldiers in pursuit, said Lt. Col. Bartolome Bacarro, the military's spokesman.
"As far as I can remember, this is our biggest casualty in a day," Bacarro told reporters. Ten soldiers and 25 militants were wounded in Thursday's clashes, he added.
Early Thursday, the insurgents ambushed members of the army's 33rd Infantry Battalion who were on their way to get supplies in Indanan township, killing 10 soldiers and wounding another, Bacarro said.
Late in the afternoon, troops from the same battalion encountered about 120 Abu Sayyaf militants and rogue members of the Moro National Liberation Front, a rebel group that signed a peace agreement with the government 11 years ago, Bacarro said.
"Rogue members" my ass.
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