JOLO ISLAND, 17 February 2005 — Hundreds of troops yesterday occupied a fortified rebel garrison in the heartland of Jolo in the southern Philippines, as security forces continued their offensive against the former separatist group Moro National Liberation Front, blamed for the death of dozens of soldiers in a string of attacks on the island.

Battle-hardened soldiers raised their weapons and flashed the victory sign inside the sprawling six-hectare garrison called Camp Ujod Jabal in the hinterland village of Bitanag in Panamao town.

The military now call this Camp Dennis Villanueva, named after an army commander who was killed last week in a bloody gun battle to capture the base, used by rebels as springboard to launch terror attacks in Jolo, about 950 kilometers south of Manila.

Soldiers said the place was littered with explosives and booby traps and they also discovered dozens of bunkers and tunnels the rebels used in their escape.

Officials said the rebels, estimated at around 800, have fled, but troops were pursuing them and sporadic fighting continue in the town. “We will pursue them and we will neutralize them and there is no escape,” said Lt. Gen. Alberto Braganza, commander of military forces in the southern Philippines.

Braganza led about 500 troops in a simple flag ceremony inside the former rebel camp. It was the first time in 30 years that a Philippine flag was raised inside an MNLF camp, one soldier said. “This day is very special to us and we dedicate this victory to our fallen comrades,” the soldier said.

Braganza also awarded 11 soldiers, including a former MNLF rebel, with the Gold Cross medals for their bravery after they fought hundreds of rebels who tried, but failed to capture several government detachments in Jolo.

“This day is a sweet victory for us and we will defeat the enemies of the state and defend democracy. We will bring peace to the people of this island,” he told soldiers.

At least 25 soldiers and some 120 gunmen had been killed in the fighting after suspected MNLF members remaining loyal to former rebel leader Nur Misuari and Abu Sayyaf bandits staged an ambush on troops on Feb. 7.

The attacks were triggered by the death of three civilians, including 14-year-old Aldasir Padiwan, during clashes between troops and Abu Sayyaf militants in Jolo. The MNLF accused the military of failing to investigate the killing of the civilians, whom they tagged as Abu Sayyaf terrrorists.

The military sent over 5,000 soldiers in Jolo to help contain the volatile situation.

Jolo military commander Brig. Gen. Agustin Demaala said sporadic clashes were reported in the village of Kulay-Kulay in Panamao, where Malik’s group is holding out. “Troops are hunting down renegade MNLF leader Ustadz Haber Malik, who was wounded in fierce clashes in Panamao,” Dema-ala said.

He said soldiers have conducted land mine-clearing operations in the village following reports that the rebels laid anti-personnel mines in the area before fleeing.

The commander of the army’s elite Scout Ranger Col. Danilo Lim said his group had killed a still undetermined number of rebels in sporadic fighting in the island, but three of his soldiers were also wounded.

“Our priority now is to capture the rebels and their leaders,” he said.

Misuari formerly headed the separatist rebel group Moro National Liberation Front that accepted limited autonomy and signed a peace deal with the government in 1996. But violence flared again in November 2001 after some 200 former rebels, backed by the Abu Sayyaf, attacked a major army base in Jolo island.

Misuari later escaped to Malaysia where he was arrested and deported back home. Misuari was imprisoned on charges of rebellion, which carry a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, but thousands of his followers and supporters still maintain strongholds in Jolo. Many Abu Sayyaf militants were former MNLF members and are still loyal to Misuari and in many instances fought alongside with forces identified with the ex-rebel leader.