6 of 8 captured soldiers in Basilan executed — Army

(Updated 7:28 p.m.) Secessionist rebels executed six of the eight elite Army soldiers they captured following Tuesday's encounter in Al-Barka town in Basilan province, bringing the number of military fatalities to 19 — the biggest in nearly five years. Army spokesman Col. Antonio Parlade said the bodies of the six soldiers were recovered in Barangay Bato-Bato in Al-Barka. One soldier remains missing while another one is now in the custody of the Scout Rangers. "Nakita na 'yung anim, buhay kagabi na-capture, pinatay na nila, so they murdered actually yung anim," he said. Of the 19 fatalities, at least four were junior officers. It was the biggest number of fatalities the military has suffered since 2007, when Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) fighters killed 14 Marines -- some of them beheaded -- in an encounter also in Al-Barka town.
The MILF, the largest secessionist organization in the country, is currently engaged in peace talks with the government and has a ceasefire agreement with government troops. Government chief negotiator Marvic Leonen described Tuesday's clash as "an isolated incident" that will not affect the negotiations. "We are confident that the current mechanisms for monitoring violations of the ceasefire agreement are in place and are effectively working," Leonen said in a statement Wednesday. MILF justifies attack The MILF justified its attack on the soldiers by saying the troops encroached on rebel territory. “They attacked our forces in the area without proper coordination and allegedly they were running after criminals," said MILF spokesman Von Al Haq. “If that’s true that they were running after criminals, they short cut the process." He noted that the MILF's ceasefire agreement with the government requires the military to refrain from conducting operations in rebel-held territories without prior coordination with the MILF leadership. “They are supposed to coordinate with their counterparts especially through the MILF ceasefire committee. They did not do this," the spokesman said. Asked if the MILF members had the right to open fire at the soldiers trespassing into their territories, Al Haq said: “Of course." He added: “If they entered our area without coordination, we’ll shoot them because they might shoot us." In a separate statement on Tuesday, the MILF accused the military of violating the truce by attacking its fighters in Basilan. "This attack of the government forces blatantly violated the existing ceasefire accord between the Government of the Philippines and MILF, which only overstates the insincerity of the government and its armed forces with the ongoing peace process and ceasefire," the MILF said on its website. Alive when captured Parlade said the military was certain that the six were executed because the troops involved in the clash saw the eight soldiers alive when the rebels captured them. "May mga nakakita na buhay sila nung kinuha kagabi. Naubusan lang ng bala yan," he said. The 19 fatalities belonged to the 13th and 19th Special Forces Company, which figured in a firefight Tuesday morning with armed men under Dan Laksaw Asnawi, commander of the MILF's 114th Base Command. Thirteen soldiers were initially reported dead, while nine fatalities were reported on the rebel side. Asnawi was among those charged for the killing and beheading of 14 soldiers in 2007. He escaped from a Basilan jail in December 2009 along with 30 other prisoners. Following Tuesday's encounter, Army chief Lt. Gen. Arturo Ortiz ordered the relief of Lt. Col. Leo Peña as commanding officer of the 4th Special Forces Battalion. He was replaced by Lt. Col. Jose Laplap. President Benigno Aquino III is scheduled to preside over a command conference with top Defense and military officials on Friday to discuss the government's next move following Tuesday's encounter. — KBK/RSJ/YA, GMA News