Scores of Filipino troops, [Islamic] militants die in clash

Yahoo! News (AP) ^ | 08/13/2009 | Jim Gomez

[Pyro7480]

Philippine troops suffered some of their worst losses in an offensive against al-Qaida-linked militants on a southern island in which at least 23 soldiers and 20 guerrillas were killed, officials said Thursday.

Troops continued to scour the battlefield following clashes Wednesday with Abu Sayyaf militants in two of their jungle camps on Basilan Island, and the tally of slain guerrillas could rise, said regional military commander Maj. Gen. Benjamin Dolorfino.

"It was a slugfest," Dolorfino told The Associated Press by telephone. "It was really close-quarter fighting so we couldn't use our artillery," he said, adding troops were pursuing small pockets of fleeing gunmen.

Although weakened by yearslong U.S.-backed offensives, about 400 Abu Sayyaf gunmen on Basilan and nearby Jolo Island and the Zamboanga peninsula have recently turned to ransom kidnappings to raise funds for terror attacks, officials said.

The militants held three international Red Cross workers on Jolo for several months this year, as well as a dozen Filipino hostages. All have been released or rescued.

More than 400 marines, army and police commandos launched simultaneous pre-dawn attacks Wednesday on two Abu Sayyaf encampments in hilly Silangkum and Baguindan villages.

The daylong clashes killed 20 marines and three army members, including two officers, in one of the biggest single-day military battle losses in recent years, Dolorfino said. Troops also found the bodies of 20 militants in Baguindam, Dolorfino said. Sixteen troops and police were wounded....

[Pyro7480]

Sad day in my father's home country, but some bad guys got sent to the hot place in the process...

[cmsgop]

May God Bless all of those Brave Philippine Troops

[Cindy]

...and Amen.

[Wiseghy]

The war of civilzation against AQ continues. It is a World War, just like those before it.

[coconutt2000]

Is the U.S. still supporting the anti-Islamist efforts in the Philippines? Did Obama make any changes in the less well known regions where our allies are fighting for their lives against the Islamists?

[montanajoe]

I was there in may and am going back very soon. Folks just don't get the fact that we are in a real global war that we are losing. In the final analysis nothing is more important than winning this war but the politicians of both political parties are oblivious to the deadly and growing threat we face.

[AlexW]

My hope is that the Muzies do not head north from Mindanao.
I am on Cebu, not so far away, but I have yet to see a Muslim.

There are many Americans living on Mindanao, and in some very nice areas, such as Davao.
The key will be to keep the insurgents on the small islands to the SW, but there has been some fighting in the west part of the mainland.