Terror group leader, 4 others killed in Cotabato clash
COTABATO CITY—Military and police authorities in Central Mindanao scored a major victory against resurgent terrorist groups in the region after a key leader of an Islamic State-linked faction was killed in a law enforcement operation on Thursday.
Lt. Col. Erwin Jay Dumaghan, commanding officer of the Army’s 40th Infantry Battalion, said Marhom Esmael, also known as “Marhom,” deputy leader of the Dawlah Islamiyah-Hassan Group, was among five men killed when they clashed with police officers and soldiers in Barangay Inug-ug, Pikit, Cotabato province.
The four other fatalities were identified as Ameer Hassan, Asnawi Sansawi Usman, Ali Hassan and Rasul Tito.
Police Col. Michael John Mangahis, Maguindanao del Sur police chief, said the operation, conducted at around 2 p.m. with the support of Army troops, aimed to serve arrest warrants against Esmael, Usman and Ali Hassan, who were facing multiple criminal charges, including murder, frustrated murder and robbery with violence or intimidation of persons.
According to Mangahis, the suspects opened fire instead of surrendering, prompting government forces to return fire, resulting in the deaths of the five men.
Esmael was among the remaining leaders of the Hassan Group after its amir (leader or commander), Mohammad Usman Solaiman, was killed in a military operation in Shariff Aguak, Maguindanao del Sur, in December last year.
Weakened
The group had reportedly closed ranks with remnants of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) and the emerging Panenekelan Group to resist continuing military and police operations against their members.
The BIFF had been significantly weakened following the death of its leader, Esmael Abubakar, alias Commander Bungos, during a military operation in Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao del Norte, on July 5 this year.
Last July 21, authorities arrested Muslimin Amilil, one of the leaders of the Panenekelan Group, in Mamasapano, Maguindanao del Sur, further crippling the group’s capacity for violence.
Amilil was allegedly the bomb-maker for both the BIFF and Dawlah Islamiyah.
Earlier, conflict monitors in Mindanao raised concerns over a surge in violence linked to the three groups ahead of the historic Bangsamoro parliamentary elections scheduled on Sept. 14.
Esmael and Usman were included in the Bangsamoro region’s list of most wanted persons. Both were tagged as among those behind the ambush that killed five police officers in Shariff Aguak, Maguindanao del Sur, on March 28 this year.
Authorities also linked them to bombings, ambushes, armed attacks against local officials and military personnel in Maguindanao del Sur and Maguindanao del Norte, as well as gun-for-hire activities.
Following clearing operations, government troops recovered two M16A1 5.56-mm rifles and three short magazines from the encounter site in Barangay Inug-ug.
Also recovered was the service firearm of Patrolman Apollo Pagurayan, one of the police officers killed in an ambush in Lambayong, Sultan Kudarat, on July 7 this year.
Maj. Gen. Jose Vladimir Cagara, acting commander of the Western Mindanao Command, said the successful operation against the Hassan Group underscored the military’s sustained campaign against the remaining local terrorist groups.
He also urged the public to continue cooperating with security forces by providing timely and accurate information to help prevent terrorist threats and maintain peace and security in the region.
