MILF leader slain in Cotabato attack

COTABATO CITY, Philippines — Unidentified assailants shot dead a leader of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in this city on Wednesday.

Abdurahman Kasid had just stepped out of the Em Manor Hotel, where he attended an activity of the Bangsamoro human settlements ministry, when two men in a pick-up truck shot him.

Kasid was a former municipal councilor in Maguidanao del Sur. His relatives expressed belief the killing could be related to a quarrel between two factions of the MILF based in Mamasapano.

The factions are reportedly squabbling for control of swaths of lands in the municipality.

Reports said Kasid was identified with one of the factions.