By Malu Cadelina Manar KIDAPAWAN CITY – At least 955 families or some 5,700 individuals continued to be in several evacuation centers in Pikit, Cotabato, a report from the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (PDRRM) office said. Pikit, Cotabato (Wikipedia / MANILA BULLETIN) PDRRM officer Mercy Foronda said the evacuees were from the barangays of Kabasalan, Paidu Pulangi, and Pnol in Pikit, Cotabato. There were also reports of displacement in nearby Shariff Saydona town in Maguindanao. Foronda said the internally-displaced persons (IDPs) in Pikit town refused to return home for fear they might still be caught in the crossfire between the government troops and the group of Abu Torayfe, believed to be a leader of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fights (BIFF) The Army has been launching air and ground assaults in the area since July. A week ago, an old woman died and two others were wounded when they were by a mortar in Barangay Kabasalan, Pikit. It turned out, reports said, the wounded individual was one of Torayfe’s men. Meanwhile, classes in affected areas have resumed, according to Omar Obas, superintendent of the Cotabato Schools Division. Obas said classes were suspended in Barangay Kabasalan for only a day as teachers, assigned in the area, were able to go to the evacuation centers to continue teaching. Foronda said the Pikit municipal government has already distributed relief items to displaced individuals and the PDRRM will augment the assistance. On Monday, Maguindanao Governor Bai Mariam Sangki led the distribution of food and other relief items to at least 2,000 individuals displaced by the ongoing skirmishes. The Army in Central Mindanao said their offensives against BIFF will continue until they drive Torayfe’s group away from the populated areas. There were also reports reaching the intelligence community that foreign nationals were helping BIFF members in bomb making and plotting terror attacks against the government.