Government troops clash with Abus

ZAMBOANGA CITY – Government troopers, backed by a 12-man team of US Green Berets, clashed with Abu Sayyaf gunmen who tried to flee Basilan island because of a tightening military cordon, the Armed Forces Southern Command (Southcom) said yesterday.

The encounter occurred at around 5 p.m. at Barangay Sengag in Tuburan town between elements of the 18th Infantry Battalion and some 20 Abu Sayyaf gunmen who trying to slip out of the island, said Southcom spokesman Lt. Col. Danilo Servando.

A 12-man alpha team of US Army Special Forces was attached to the 18th IB but the team was at battalion headquarters 15 kilometers away and US troopers "were not involved in the encounter," Servando said.

He said the Abu Sayyaf gunmen were trying to escape Basilan when government troopers, under Lt. Col. Danny Lucero, caught up with them and engaged them in a 30-minute gunfight.

There was no immediate report on Abu Sayyaf casualties but no government soldier was injured and the Abu Sayyaf fell back in disarray. The military seized two pump boats the gunmen would have used to flee.

While no US servicemen was involved in the encounter itself, the military said the "technical assistance" of the American commandos plus the presence of Philippine Navy gunboats prevented the group from slipping out of the island.

Aside from the 18th IB, Green Beret alpha-teams are also attached to observe and assess the operations of the 55th, 10th and 32nd Infantry Battalions plus the 3rd Marine Brigade, 1st Ranger Battalion and the Light Reaction Company in six towns in Basilan and its capital of Isabela City.

Some 160 Special Forces commandos are deployed in Basilan, part of a 660-strong force engaged in joint exercises with the AFP to crush the Abu Sayyaf who are still holding hostage Filipino nurse Ediborah Yap and American missionary couple Martin and Gracia Burnham.

Brig. Gen, Emmanuel Teodosio, co-director of the "Balikatan" exercises, noted that the military’s intelligence capability has already enhanced the capability of local troops.

"Our troops are experts in human intelligence," Teodosio said. "What we need not is technology. Using the sophisticated intelligence equipment of the Americans, our soldiers can be more dexterous in the field."

Teodosio noted that local forces’ familiarity with the terrain and rapport with local residents give them a natural advantage in intelligence-gathering but could use further improvement.

"It is a generic capability of our soldiers to give more emphasis and be trained deeper in the field of intelligence. We need to enhance more on this aspect and the Americans can help us a lot on this concern," he said.

"We have been in this field of combat against the Abu Sayyaf for several years and we now have to focus on locating them. Once we do that, they have nowhere to run," he added.

He conceded, however, that the very presence of US troops in Basilan poses a serious danger because the Abu Sayyaf are keen on notching American casualties to embarrass the anti-terrorism operation and garner support from other terrorist groups.

"The US forces face a much bigger danger because the enemy is really planning to inflict casualties on the Americans so that we will be embarrassed," Teodosio said.

Aside from their operation concerns, Teodosio said Filipino commanders also have to attend to security arrangements for US troops already deployed on Basilan island.

"The Americans are vulnerable targets by extremists. We are keeping all eyes and ears on this. Mahirap nang masingitan, baka madisgrasya (Letting one slip through might cause an accident)," he said.

He noted that several Abu Sayyaf extremists are also accomplished marksmen who can hit targets over long ranges and through varied weather conditions.