Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, March 8) — Government forces launched attacks, including aerial bombings, against Abu Sayyaf fighters in Sulu Friday, the military said.
“Selective aerial bombardment” was ongoing as of 11:30 a.m., the Philippine Army’s Joint Task Force Sulu said in a press release.
It said military assaults began at 6:40 a.m. following the “monitored and confirmed consolidation of 200 terrorists in the hinterland of Patikul, Sulu.”
Patikul, a known lair of the Abu Sayyaf group, is a town near the provincial capital Jolo, where a church was bombed last January 27, leaving at least 22 people dead and at least 100 wounded. The military has since stepped up its offensive against the Abu Sayyaf in line with President Rodrigo Duterte’s order to “destroy” the terror group.
The military believes Abu Sayyaf top leader Radullan Sahiron is in Sulu along with Hatib Hajan Sawadjaan, the supposed acting leader of the international terrorist network ISIS in the country.
“The ASG (Abu Sayyaf Group) main leaders are reported to be in the consolidation area planning to launch terror acts,” the military said.
Security remains tight in Jolo to thwart any possible attack the Abu Sayyaf may launch to divert the government forces’ attention away from the intensified military operations, the military added.
