3 cops hurt in clash with Abu Sayyaf in Sulu

Three members of the National Police's elite Special Action Force were hurt on Monday after a clash with suspected members of the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf in the southern Philippine province of Sulu, police said Wednesday. The three policemen, identified only as PO2 De Vera, PO1 Ratilla and PO1 Medinella, were on their way to their camp in Jolo town when they chanced upon a group of suspected Abu Sayyaf bandits in Barangay Ajid in Indanan town at 3 p.m. Monday, the belated police report said. A firefight immediately ensued between the policemen and the suspected bandits, which resulted in the wounding of the three cops and the death of an undetermined number of suspected Abu Sayyaf members, according to the report. The wounded cops were brought to the Sulu General Hospital for treatment, the report added. An initial investigation of the incident revealed that the three policemen were serving as escorts for Senior Superintendent Joseph Ramac, current officer-in-charge of the Sulu Provincial Police. Pursuit operations are currently being held to capture the members of the bandit group who fled after the clash, the police said. The Abu Sayyaf has been blamed for various kidnap-for-ransom and bombing activities in the southern Philippine island of Mindanao, as well as in Metro Manila. — with Andreo Calonzo, RSJ, GMANews.TV