CAMP SIONGCO, Maguindanao – The military foiled an attack by the Daesh-inspired Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) on an Army detachment in Sharif Aguak, Maguindanao Wednesday night, an official said.
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Lt. Col. Anhouvic Atilano, Army’s Sixth Infantry Division spokesperson, said Thursday the undermanned Army-para military patrol base in Barangay Labu-Labu was attacked at around 10 p.m. by an undetermined number of BIFF extremists.
No one from the government side was hurt in the attack, he said.
Military forces, backed by Simba tanks and artillery fire, pounded the BIFF positions within a kilometer radius from the government forces’ detachment that resulted in the withdrawal of the terrorists, Atilano said.
Army officials said it was unknown if the attackers suffered casualties, noting that soldiers from nearby detachments also fired machineguns and mortars on the BIFF positions.
The detachment in Barangay Labu-Labu is situated before the approach of Labu-Labu Bridge and manned by soldiers and the Civilian Armed Forces Geographical Unit (CAFGU).
“We advise the civilians to stay home and report to the nearest Army base if they see BIFF gunmen near them,” Atilano said.
Atilano described the harassment as another attempt to make an impression that the BIFF remains "a force to reckon with."
He said Wednesday night’s attack could be a retaliation to Army offensives launched in the Liguasan marshland after the Datu Piang attack last December 3.
Maj. Gen. Juvymax Uy, 6th Infantry Division commander, said he ordered the deployment of more soldiers backed by armored personnel carriers in areas within the so-called “SPMS box.”
The “SPMS box” is a military term referring to the adjoining Maguindanao towns of Shariff Aguak, Pagatin (Datu Saudi Ampatuan), Mamasapano, and Shariff Saydona where the BIFF operates.