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CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – Government troops clashed with communist insurgents and killing 2 gunmen in San Luis town in the southern Philippine province of Agusan del Sur, officials said Tuesday. Officials said the fighting erupted in Binicalan village after soldiers stormed a hideout of the New People’s Army rebel group. Troops recovered the bodies of the slain rebels and their weapons after the Monday fighting. There was no report of military casualties, but the government offensive is still continuing in the province, a known NPA lair. The identities of the dead were unknown and the NPA did not release any information on its casualties. Soldiers also captured the encampment which was being used by rebels as a springboard to launch attacks against military and police targets in the province. President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the military to destroy the rebel group after peace talks collapsed despite repeated attempts to restart negotiations. The communist group had demanded the govern...

COTABATO CITY – The number of casualties in the deadly New Year’s Eve bombing in southern Philippines has risen to 47 and security officials have quickly blamed pro-ISIS militants for the attack. Gov. Mujiv Hataman, of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, said 2 people were killed and 45 more injured when a bomb went off outside the South Seas Mall in the busy business district of Cotabato City. “Forty-five people are injured, with 2 dead as of this writing,” Hataman said late Monday, condemning the attack and calling it a “terrorist act.” “We are irrevocably grieved about the casualties incurred, thoroughly condemn this act, and call for a thorough investigation. We need to make sure acts like these never happen again, and that the perpetrator is brought to justice.” “We urge investigators and all civilians to not be caught up in the chaos surrounding this terrorist act. We cannot afford to be divisive at this moment. Only by melding together can we bring about peace and justice,...

COTABATO CITY – A powerful bomb explosion on New Year’s Eve in the southern Philippine city of Cotabato left over two dozen casualties, various sources said. The bomb was believed planted on a motorcycle taxi parked outside the South Seas Mall in downtown Cotabato where people gathered to buy gifts for the New Year’s celebration. The attack occurred while the whole region is under an extended martial law due to threats of terrorism. At least 2 people were reported killed and more than 2 dozen others injured in the blast. No individual or group claimed responsibility for the attack, but the bombing occurred just as residents were opposing the inclusion of Cotabato to the proposed Bangsamoro autonomous region under the rule of the rebel group Moro Islamic Liberation Front. The MILF, which signed an interim peace deal with Manila in 2014, has been campaigning hard in Cotabato for the ratification of the controversial Bangsamoro Organic Law which - if approved in a referendum in Januar...

ZAMBOANGA CITY – Abu Sayyaf militants released the son of a southern Philippine town mayor kidnapped last year in Zamboanga del Norte province, police said Monday. Police said the 28-year Jed Quimbo, whose father Eddie, is the mayor of the coastal town of Labason, was freed Sunday afternoon in Patikul town. Quimbo was handed over to his brother Justin, who reportedly sought assistance from local leaders to fetch the victim in Anuling village in Patikul town. Quimbo was later presented to the military in Jolo town. It was unknown whether Quimbo’s family had paid ransom to the Abu Sayyaf or not. He was seized by six militants on September 6 in downtown Labason. The Abu Sayyaf - founded in the 1990s in Basilan province - which was originally fighting for a separate Islamic state, has resorted to ransom kidnapping after its chieftain Abdurajak Janjalani was killed in a firefight with a policeman in Lamitan City in December 1998. But some of its hardcore commanders pledged allegiance with t...

COTABATO CITY – The Philippine Army said 2 soldiers who were ambushed in the southern Cotabato City survived the attack, although seriously wounded. The 6th Infantry Division said the duo Private First Class Nerwin Delfin and Michael Haudar, who are members of the 37 th  Infantry Battalion, were attacked Friday while travelling on a motorcycle along Sinsuat Avenue. Delfin is in critical condition and other reports said he died in the hospital. Photo of soldiers from the Facebook account of Mujahid Bin-muhammad.  Their unit is deployed in Maguindanao province. Witnesses said motorcycle gunmen attacked the duo without warning. The ambush occurred despite an extended martial law in the troubled region. But gun attacks here are not uncommon. Photos of the soldiers slumped on the road were circulated on Facebook. The clarification of the army came out late and after media reports, quoting various sources, claimed the two soldiers were slain in the attack. It was unknown ...

ZAMBOANGA CITY – Police are holding a suspected Abu Sayyaf militant after capturing him on a village in the southern Philippine port city of Zamboanga, officials said Friday. Officials said the 57-year old Ben Mungakay, alias Boy Negro, was tracked down by policemen and soldiers in Curuan village, about 46 kilometers from downtown Zamboanga. Mungakay’s group under Abu Sayyaf sub-leader Marzan Ajijul, is being linked to the gruesome murder of Doroteo Gonzales in April 2009. Gonzales, 71, was kidnapped in Zamboanga and brought to nearby Basilan province where he was beheaded the next month after his family failed to pay ransom to the Abu Sayyaf. There was no immediate statement from Gonzales’ family over the capture of Mungakay. The capture of the militant came days after Mayor Beng Climaco ordered security forces to intensify their operations against terrorism and criminals. “The security sector has done and continue to do a great job to guaranty the safety and security of the residents...

GUNMEN SHOT dead a radio announcer at dawn Friday in Guihulngan City in the central Philippine province of Negros Oriental, officials said. Undersecretary Joel Egco, who is the executive director of the Presidential Task Force on Media Security, said the police are investigating the murder of Gabriel Alburo, of radio station dyWC-Radyo Bandilyo. Egco has strongly condemned the killing. “The Presidential Task Force on Media Security is deeply saddened and strongly condemns, in no uncertain terms, the killing of Gabriel “Komander Aguila” Alburo, radio announcer of dyWC-Radyo Bandilyo,” he said. Alburo, who was also running for city councilor in the May 2019 polls, had been shot repeatedly by 2 armed men while heading home on his motorbike. The attackers, who were also on a motorcycle, tailed Alburo from a cockpit arena and shot him near North Poblacion village. Egco, quoting a police report, said prior to the killing, Alburo had a heated argument with an unidentified betting rival as the...

COTABATO CITY – Two army soldiers were gunned down Friday morning in Cotabato City in southern Philippines despite an extended martial law in the troubled region. The duo – both in civilian clothes - was travelling on a motorcycle when gunmen ambushed them along Sinsuat Avenue at around 9 in the morning. The soldiers were instantly killed in the attack. The 6 th  Infantry Division did not release any report on the twin murders, but gun attacks here are not uncommon. Photos of the slain soldiers were circulated on Facebook and have identified them as Private First Class Nerwin Delfin and Michael Haudar, who were members of the 37 th  Infantry Battalion. Their unit is deployed in Maguindanao province. Witnesses said motorcycle gunmen attacked the duo without warning. It was unknown if the killings were perpetrated by rebels or pro-ISIS militants fighting for a separate state in Mindanao where President Rodrigo Duterte imposed martial law since last year following a dea...

DAVAO CITY – Communist insurgents clashed with security forces and wounded nearly a dozen soldiers in Comp0stela Valley’s Monkayo town in southern Philippines. The fighting erupted on Wednesday after soldiers ran into a group of New People’s Army (NPA) rebels in Mount Diwata and a firefight ensued. The 10 th Infantry Division only reported the fighting on Thursday. It said troops were deployed in the area after villagers secretly reported to the military the presence of rebels who were recruiting civilians to fight the government. The rebels also planted improvised explosives on roads where security patrol usually passes. “There were 11 wounded on the government forces, but had been immediately brought to the hospital and all are now in stable condition. Casualties on the enemy side are still to be determined as there were traces of bloodstain found in the encounter site,” the army said, adding, it has raised the alert status of all units to red while the military operations are going...

DAVAO CITY – A whole unit of the communist rebel group New People’s Army or NPA has surrendered to the military in the southern Philippine province of Agusan del Sur, officials said Wednesday. Army Lt. Col. Ezra Balagtey, a spokesman for the Eastern Mindanao Command, said 19 members of the Guerrilla Front 3 surrendered to the 26 th  and 75 th  Infantry Battalions in Loreto town on Tuesday.   Military photos released to the regional newspaper Mindanao Examiner show NPA rebels and weapons during their surrender in Agusan del Sur province on Dec. 25, 2018. He said the rebels, led by their commander, also yielded assorted weapons, including communication radio sets, grenades and ammunition. “Corruption in the communist party and the rebel group caused a whole unit of insurgents operating in Agusan Sur and Compostela Valley provinces to surrender to the democratic government,” Balagtey said. “They can no longer endure the corruption and inconsistencies in their propaganda and ...

SULU – Muslims in the southern Philippine province of Sulu are standing against their inclusion to the proposed Bangsamoro autonomous region and vowed to vote against it in a plebiscite set in January. Muslims in the region are asked to ratify the Bangsamoro Organic Law or BOL that would pave the way for the new region which shall replace the current Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao or ARMM. ARMM is composed of Sulu, Basilan, Tawi-Tawi, Lanao del Sur and Maguindanao whose residents belong to different tribes. The Tausugs in Sulu do not want to be part of the new autonomous region under the former rebel group Moro Islamic Liberation Front, and prefer to be with the Zamboanga Peninsula region where it was previously a part of. The MILF, which signed an interim peace deal with Manila in 2014, was largely part of the presidential commission that drafted the Bangsamoro Basic Law. Now, the Tausug people and their leaders led by Sulu Gov. Toto Tan and his father, Sakur Tan – a philanthrop...

COTABATO CITY - Governor Mujiv Hataman of the Muslim autonomous region - in his final State of the Region Address - has thanked Wednesday former President Benigno Aquino for giving him the opportunity the opportunity to serve Bangsamoro. Hataman said it was Aquino who chose him to lead the troubled region in 2012 and after nearly 7 years, he introduced reform and guided it to become one of the most progressive areas in the country in terms of investments. "I shall be forever grateful to you," he said in his speech in front of a huge crowd outside his office. Hataman, who emotional throughout his speech, had to pause several times to wipe his tears and drank water to clear his throat. His voice cracked many times as he tried to recompose himself and continue his speech.  Gov. Mujiv Hataman during his State of the Region Address on Wednesday at the compound of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao in Cotabato City. (Mindanao Examiner) At the end of the speech, Hataman humbly...

COTABATO CITY - Showing support and unity, leaders of former Moro rebel groups will attend regional governor Mujiv Hataman’s final address to the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao ( ARMM ) on Wednesday. Gov. Hataman, in his 2017 State of the Region Address, anticipated the approaching transition from the  ARMM  to the new Bangsamoro government. “Maaring ito na ang huling pagkakataon at nagpapasalamat ako sa inyong lahat hindi bilang pagwawakas ng aklat kundi paglipat lamang ng susunod at mas magandang kwento sa ating kabanata. Tuloy ang ating kwento bilang Moro. Tara na’t isulat natin ito,” he said. Earlier this month, Gov. Hataman together with Al-Hajj Murad Ebrahim of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and Muslimin Sema of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) expressed their support to the BOL by encouraging everyone to vote next month. The  ARMM  governor, in his previous remarks, vowed to voluntarily step down from his position as the regi...

HOT OFF THE PRESS: The Mindanao Examiner Regional Newspaper Dec. 17-23, 2018 For all your publication needs and advertisements, please call Sales and Advertising Department at telephone numbers (062) 992-5480 in Zamboanga City and (082) 284-1859 in Davao City or mobile numbers (0995) 520-2358,  (0997) 317-2021 and (0947) 482-3453. Or you may e-mail us at mindanaoexaminer@gmail.com Like Us on Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/mindanaoexaminer Follow Us on Twitter:  https://twitter.com/MindanaoExamine Read And Share Our News:  https://www.mindanaoexaminer.com  Mirror Site:   https://mindanaoexaminernewspaper.blogspot.com Digital Archives:  https://issuu.com/mindanaoexaminernewspaper See Media Rates:  https://mindanaoexaminer.com/ad-rates

SULTAN KUDARAT – Police reported a grenade attack on the house of a southern Philippine town ahead of midterm elections in the restive region of Mindanao. Police said an unidentified assailant lobbed the grenade on the compound of the house of Lambayong town mayor Ramon Abalos in Sultan Kudarat province late Friday. The politician was not in the house at the time of the blast and police said no one was reported killed or injured in the explosion. It was the second attack on the mayor’s house in just 5 months. Senior Inspector Herman Luna said the attacker was on a motorbike driven by another man and both escaped after the blast. No individual or group claimed responsibility for the attack, he said. In July, police said the mayor’s brother, Carlos, who is a town council member; and a cousin, Richard, were both wounded in another grenade attack on his house. There was no immediate statement from the mayor and police did not say whether the latest attack was connected to politics or not. ...

ZAMBOANGA CITY – Seven pro-ISIS militants, including a sub-leader, were killed in ferocious battle between Philippine Marines and Abu Sayyaf in the southern island of Minis, officials announced Saturday. Ten other people surrendered to soldiers, according to Rear Admiral Rene Medina, commander of the Naval Forces Western Mindanao, adding, the fighting, which occurred Thursday, also killed a soldier and left 3 others wounded. The Western Mindanao Command earlier said 3 militants were slain in the battle after troops clashed with about 50 Abu Sayyaf gunmen on the island off Sulu’s Patikul town. Medina said members of the 62nd Marine Company under Colonel Armel Tolato responded to intelligence reports received from the military’s Joint Task Force Sulu on the presence of militants in the area. He said several vessels and a helicopter provided sea blockade and aerial support to ground troops, including elite members of the Special Operations Platoon 1 and a SEAL team. “Sea denial is now bei...

LANAO DEL NORTE Rep. Khalid Dimaporo said the referendum set in January of the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) in Mindanao has no funding after the proposed P857 million for the plebiscite was not included in the P3.757 trillion national budget in the 2019 General Appropriations Act. Dimaporo said this during the budget deliberation and that the Commission on Elections and the Palace will have to make use of their savings to be able to hold the referendum in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. ARMM Gov. Mujiv Hataman has said that they could set aside a fraction of its 2019 budget to fund the plebiscite if in case national fund for the referendum does not come on time. “We support the BOL all the way and budget should not be a problem; we are recommending to allow part of the ARMM proposed budget to be used for the plebiscite,” he said. Lawmakers have said that the P10-billion budget submitted by the Commission on Elections for 2019 does not include expenditures for the plebiscite. ...

DAVAO CITY – ‘Fake news!’ Yan ang naging tugon ni Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenza sa inilabas na dokumento ni presidential son, Paolo “Pulong” Duterte na naguugnay sa iba’t-ibang mga personalidad at grupo, kabilang ang ilang taga-media sa umano’y sa mga nagnanais o nagpaplanong patalsikin si Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte. “The first time I saw that posting, I said it is fake news. I still maintain that it's fake news,” ani Lorenzana sa mga mamamahayag ng ito ay tanungin ukol sa listahan ni Pulong na kanyang inilabas sa kanyang Facebook page kamakailan lamang. Kabilang sa mga nasa listahan ay si Bise Presidente Leni Robredo, mga nasa hanay ng oposisyon, kabilang ang PLDT at Jollibee, mga religious group at gayun rin ang mga alagad ng Simbahan, kabilang ang isang patay na Obispo. Agad naman tinanggal ni Pulong ang naturang post nito sa Facebook matapos na umani ng mariing pagbatikos mula sa mga netizens, oposisyon at Simbahang Katoliko at wala rin itong paliwanag kung bakit niya binura ...

MALAYSIAN AUTHORITIES have foiled terror attacks and arrested 2 Abu Sayyaf and five Malaysian militants linked to ISIS, in a series of anti-terror operations in the rich eastern state of Sabah near the Philippine border of Tawi-Tawi. The capture of the suspects prevented potential terrorist attacks, particularly in non-Muslim sites of worship in Malaysia, on orders from ISIS. The operations, carried over several days last month, revealed the terror plot and the connection of those captured to ISIS in Syria and Jamaa Ansharut Daulah, its largest affiliate in Indonesia. The arrest of the suspects foiled terror attacks in Malaysia, according to a report by Channel News Asia, which quoted Sabah police. Police Inspector Fuzi Harun said the Abu Sayyaf members – whose identities were not made public – said one of them was involved in at least three serial kidnappings in southern Philippines and Sabah. “The suspect is a member of the Abu Sayyaf group who was involved in at least three serial k...

SULU – Three Abu Sayyaf militants and a soldier were killed in fierce clashes before dawn Thursday on Minis Island off Sulu’s Patikul town in southern Philippines, officials said. Officials said two more soldiers were injured in the fighting after a group of marines sent to hunt down the Abu Sayyaf clashed with dozens of militants, sparking a battle on the island where the gunmen had been hiding. By daybreak, troops recovered the bodies of the militants and two M14 rifles. The slain soldier, who name was not made public by the military, was taken by his companions to a military base in the capital town of Jolo. The wounded marines were evacuated to Camp Navarro General Hospital in Zamboanga City. Army Lt. Col. Gerry Besana, a spokesman for the Western Mindanao Command, said the militants were under Abu Sayyaf commander Majid Emamil. He said the soldiers, all members of the Philippine Marine Ready Force-Sulu, fought about 50 gunmen. “Heavy skirmishes ensued resulting in the killing of t...

SULU – A poultry farm that can accommodate thousands of chickens is soon to start construction in the town of Parang in the southern Philippine province of Sulu, Gov. Toto Tan said Wednesday. Tan said Bounty Fresh Agro Ventures in partnership with the Go Negosyo Program and the provincial government have launched the “Kapatid for Agro Bounty Fresh Poultry Farm” in the village of Tukay. He said the livelihood program will greatly help many beneficiaries since Bounty Agro Ventures will also provide training for those who would be selected to run the farm. Sulu Gov. Toto Tan with Ana Margarita Malvar, the project head for the Muslim autonomous region and adviser for Agri- Enterprises of the Go-Negosyo Program; and Dr. Kier Jason Fernandez, Bounty Fresh Contract Growing Supervisor, led the ground-breaking ceremony attended by the town’s mayor Madzhar Loong. (Photos courtesy of Sulu Provincial Government.)  Tan, together with Ana Margarita Malvar, the project head for the Muslim autono...

ZAMBOANGA CITY – Over 7,000 bags of rice suspected to have been smuggled from Sabah were seized by the Coast Guard in Zamboanga City in southern Philippines, officials said Wednesday. Officials said the Coast Guard confiscated the rice in the coastal village of Recodo after intelligence agents monitored small boats unloading the cargo from a vessel anchored off Zamboanga. Zamboanga City Mayor Beng Climaco talks with representatives of the Bureau of Customs and the Coast Guard in the village of Recodo on December 12, 2018 following the confiscation of some 7,000 bags of suspected smuggled rice from Malaysia. (Photos by Kathy Wee Sit)  The Coast Guard, under Lt. Commander Noriel Ramos, immediately coordinated with the military’s Task Force Zamboanga to secure the smuggled rice and reported the apprehension with the Bureau of Customs. The bags of, worth some P11 million, were discovered on a compound of a mosque late Tuesday, but villagers would not say who the owner was. The seizure...

ZAMBOANGA CITY – Two Filipinos who are members of the pro-ISIS militant group Abu Sayyaf, had been captured in Sabah in a fresh crackdown by Malaysian terrorist police in the eastern state near the Philippine border of Tawi-Tawi. The operation, carried over several days last month, also led to the capture of 5 Malaysian nationals who have links with ISIS in Syria and Jamaa Ansharut Daulah, its largest affiliate in Indonesia. The arrest of the suspects foiled terror attacks in Malaysia, according to a report by Channel News Asia. Quoting Police Inspector Fuzi Harun, the report said the Abu Sayyaf members - whose identity was not made public – said one of the Abu Sayyaf militants was involved in at least three serial kidnappings in southern Philippines and Sabah. “The suspect is a member of the Abu Sayyaf group who was involved in at least three serial kidnappings in southern Philippines and Sabah. He is occupied as an individual who is requested by the Eastern Sabah Security Command to ...

A TOTAL of 56 immigration officers will be deployed to different international airports to beef up their manpower in anticipation of the influx of international passengers that will enter and exit the country during the holiday break. Bureau of Immigration’s (BI) Port Operations Division chief Grifton Medina said BI Commissioner Jaime Morente issued an order directing the concerned employees to report to their airport assignments starting this week. “We are actually expecting an upsurge of travelers entering the Philippines by around the second or third week of December as Christmastime approaches,” Medina said. Medina has recommended to the BI chief the implementation of a personnel augmentation scheme in view of the reported increase in the number of passengers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) and other airports in the past few days. Of the 56 BI officers given new assignments, 19 of them will be reporting to the NAIA while the 37 others were dispersed to the airports...

KIDAPAWAN CITY – A 27-year old wildlife biologist from the University of the Philippines in Laguna province died in Mount Apo in Kidapawan City in North Cotabato province after complaining of difficulty in breathing, police said Sunday. Police said James de Villa Alvarez, who was resident of Lemery town in Batangas province, was conducting herpetofaunal research when he started puking and cannot breath properly. Supt. Ramel Hojilla, the local police chief, said Alvarez climbed Mount Apo with a group of other people led by Kristian Suetos on December 5 to do research on amphibians and reptiles. And on the second day, Alvarez first complained of dizziness and then vomited and eventually had problems in his breathing. Rescuers were sent to the area and found Alvarez who was not anymore breathing. His body was brought to a funeral parlor here. (Rhoderick Beñez) Like Us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mindanaoexaminer Follow Us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MindanaoExamine Read And ...