ZAMBOANGA CITY — The Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom) announced they have achieved substantial accomplishment in its fight against the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) in 2017.
Capt. Jo-ann Petinglay, Westmincom information officer, made this announcement Thursday during the command’s first press conference for the year, saying 352 ASG members were neutralized from January 1 to December 31, 2017.
Of the total, 128 Abu Sayyaf bandits were killed while 80 were apprehended, and 144 surrendered in the Western Mindanao area.
Petinglay said most of those who surrendered numbering to 70 were from Basilan, 53 from Sulu, and 21 in Tawi-Tawi.
The troops also recovered and seized 223 firearms in 2017 from the Abu Sayyaf bandits.
“Substantial results were achieved through the intensified conduct of combat, intelligence, and civil-military operations launched by the Joint Task Forces within their respective joint area of operations,” she said.
Lt. Gen. Carlito Galvez, Westmincom chief, said the Joint Task Forces Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi would sustain the conduct of focused military operations to defeat the ASG and other threat groups in their area of operations.
The other threat groups within the area of responsibility of Westmincom included the New People’s Army in Zamboanga Peninsula and Central Mindanao as well as the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) also in Central Mindanao aside from the ASG.
Two members of the ASG were neutralized since January 1 until Thursday this year in Western Mindanao area.
One of the two surrendered to the Joint Task Force Basilan while the other was apprehended in Zamboanga City. (Teofilo Garcia, Jr/PNA)
