MANILA, Philippines — Ten suspected Muslim militants died Friday during a fierce gun battle with Philippine security forces in what marks this year’s most deadly confrontation in the nation’s troubled southern region, according to government officials.
The violent encounter began when members of the separatist organization Dawlah Islamiya-Maute fired upon police and military personnel who were attempting to execute arrest warrants for their leader on charges including murder in a Lanao del Sur province village, stated police Maj. Gen. Robert Alexander Morico.
Military authorities identified the target as Amerol Mangoranca, whose fighters had previously declared allegiance to the Islamic State organization and were suspected of conducting recent guerrilla operations, including a January ambush in neighboring Lanao del Norte province that claimed four soldiers’ lives.
The hour-long firefight in Marantao village resulted in the deaths of Mangoranca and nine additional suspected insurgents, including four female fighters, while government forces suffered no casualties, according to Morico and military spokesmen.
“Our forces have struck a decisive blow and we will continue forward until enduring peace is fully secured,” declared army 1st Infantry Division commander Maj. Gen. Yegor Rey Barroquillo Jr. “It is justice served for every fallen soldier, every grieving family and every community that suffered under terror.”
Security forces recovered four rifles, one pistol, a grenade and explosive device components during the operation, military and police sources reported.
An infant discovered at the combat site received medical care, though military statements provided no additional details about the child’s condition.
Violence in the predominantly Muslim southern region has significantly decreased since 2014, when the largest rebel organization, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, reached an autonomy agreement with Manila after commanding thousands of armed fighters for decades.
However, several smaller militant factions that rejected participation in peace negotiations have maintained intermittent attacks in pursuit of an independent Muslim nation.
The historic peace accord substantially reduced years of intermittent warfare that resulted in tens of thousands of military and civilian deaths, forced countless rural residents from their homes, and hindered economic progress in a resource-abundant area containing some of the Philippines’ most impoverished communities.
Philippine armed forces continue battling a separate communist rebellion that has also been significantly diminished through military defeats, internal conflicts and defections.
