ZAMBOANGA CITY, 26 August — At least six people were killed and six others were wounded yesterday when suspected Moro extremist guerrillas fired on a passenger jeep in troubled southern island of Basilan, the military said.
The attack in Cabcaban village in Sumisip town did not disrupt a congressional hearing into allegations that the extremist Abu Sayyaf group bribed several military commanders to allow them to escape with hostages during a siege in another Basilan town two months ago.
Army Col. Hermogenes Esperon said a soldier was among those killed and another soldier was among the wounded. Police said one of the fatalities was a 5-year-old child.
The driver’s sister, Saada Salih, told Radio Mindanao Network that the passenger jeep carried many passengers, including women and children.
The radio station reported that the attackers, who wore black uniforms, took belongings from the victims scattered inside the jeep. Some of the victims were brought to a hospital in Isabela, capital of Basilan, where congressmen held a hearing on the bribery allegations against key military officers.
Meanwhile, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) yesterday accused the military of violating a standing truce agreement by attacking separatist positions in Basilan on Wednesday.
Hadji Amir Migkong, commander of the MILF’s internal security force, said a separatist fighter was killed and another wounded when elements of the army’s 103rd Brigade assaulted MILF positions in Barangays Pamatsakin and Irilly, Sumisip town. Col. Esperon, chief of the army’s 103rd Brigade, has confirmed that there was fighting in Sumisip on Wednesday but refused to comment on the outcome.
