ILIGAN CITY – Joint Task Force Sulu commander Major Gen. Ignatius Patrimonio has commended the 1103rd Infantry Brigade for the surrender of a 13-year-old Egyptian Abu Sayyaf Group fighter and subleader in Indanan, Sulu on Wednesday, June 14.
Patrimonio attributed this achievement to intelligence units, the local chief executives, other stakeholders, and the peace-loving people of the municipality.
Lt. Gen. Roy Galido, commander of the Armed Forces Western Mindanao Command, said that the surrender of the foreign terrorist fighter and subleader manifests that the government has won the hearts not only of the people but also that of the remnants of the different threat groups.
“Our successful operations only prove that with commitment and collaboration, we can accomplish so much in the battle against terrorism, insurgency, and any form of criminality,” Galido said.
Ibrahim was the last juvenile foreign terrorist on the periodic list and believed to have entered the country in 2017 as a tourist through the Ninoy Aquino International Airport with his stepfather, mother, and two brothers.
He revealed that their family joined the ASG in Basilan in 2017 and transferred to Sulu to join ASG Leader Hatib Hajan Sawadjaan in 2018.
Ibrahim’s mother, Reda Mohammad Mahmud, blew herself as a suicide bomber while attacking a military checkpoint in Kilometer 3, Barangay Kajatian, Indanan, on Sept. 8, 2019.
His stepfather, Abduramil, and brother, Abdurahman, died in an encounter with the AFP in Barangay Kan Islam, Indanan, on Nov. 7, 2019, while his other brother, Yusof, was killed in an encounter with the military on April 17, 2021, in Igasan, Patikul, Sulu.
Ibrahim joined the ASG as a juvenile 10-year-old fighter and was involved in numerous encounters in Sulu where he was injured in the head and right forearm.
Speaking in the Tausug dialect, Ibrahim expressed resentment towards mother who dragged him and his brothers into horrific situations where they must fight against the government forces and conduct atrocities.
He thought that they were just going on a vacation trip in the Philippines but he was forced to join the Abu Sayyaf Group.
Also surrendering with Ibrahim was alias “Ellam,” 27, a sub-leader of the Sulu-based Abu Sayyaf Group under Radullan Sahiron, alias “Magang.”
Ellam was recruited in 2009 when he was just 15. He was a close-in security of Sahiron and the guide of the group in Patikul and was involved in numerous armed confrontations between the ASG and government forces from 2009-2021.
Ibrahim and Ellam handed over one M16 rifle, one M16A1 rifle, one magazine, and 20 rounds of 5.56mm ammunition.
They underwent custodial debriefing after which they were presented to 1103rd Infantry Brigade commander, Col. Christopher Tampus, at the unit headquarters in Camp Bud Datu, Tagbak, Indanan.