15 die in clashes with gunmen in the Philippines

Officials said soldiers clashed with at least six gunmen who were transporting improvised explosives in a van. The fighting, which broke out at around 10 a.m., left five people dead — two soldiers and three gunmen.
A motorcycle bomb exploded 30 minutes later outside a Catholic church and killed one civilian and wounded several more.
The other gunmen escaped after holding several civilians and using them as human shields. Some of them were killed, including a policeman who tried to rescue the hostages.
Security forces were pursuing the Abu Sayyaf gunmen, but the fate of the hostages remains unknown.
 an ambush by suspected Abu Sayyaf and Moro rebels in Ungkaya Pukan town outside Isabela City.