1 alleged Abu bandit killed in Sulu clash

A suspected Abu Sayyaf bandit was killed following an early Tuesday morning clash with patrolling Army soldiers in Talipao town in Sulu province, a military report said. The report said the encounter erupted at 7:45 a.m. when elements of the 15th Infantry Battalion chanced upon more or less 50 Abu Sayayf bandits believed to have been reinforced by other lawless elements in Sangahan village. The firefight lasted for 20 minutes, the report said. An unidentified Army enlisted personnel was wounded in the said encounter. The operating troops recovered the body of the slain bandit as well as an M16 rifle, a backpack and a military uniform. The clash in Talipao occurred on the same day an encounter in Lanhil Island in Basilan province claimed the lives of four members of the Philippine Navy's Special Operations Group and six suspected Abu Sayyaf bandits. Government forces are currently on hot pursuit against local terrorists in the southern provinces of Sulu and Basilan. - GMANews.TV