(UPDATE) 3 civilians injured in rebels' attack in Sulu

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Xinhua) - Firefight erupted when gunmen from the rebel group of Abu Sayyaf launched an attack yesterday on a marine detachment in a remote village in  Sulu, leaving three civilians injured, police said today.

Sulu provincial police director Abraham Orbita said the insurgents pounced on the detachment of the 22nd Marine Company situated in Bungkaong village, Patikul town, a known bastion of the Abu Sayyaf in Sulu, about 1:30 p.m. Friday.

The three wounded civilians were provided first aid by the marines while in the midst of repelling the Abu Sayyaf group, he added.

The police official said the militants retreated after suffering undetermined wounded followers.

The police believed that the militants staged the attacks to drive out the marines from occupying the areas in Patikul, a known haven of the Abu Sayyaf.

The Abu Sayyaf was founded in earlier 1990s by Islamic extremists and it has degenerated into a loose alliance of local armed bandit groups in Sulu and Basilan islands over the past decade, carrying out a series of terrorist attacks and high- profile kidnapping for ransom cases.