Philippine clashes 'kill 10 Daesh-linked rebels'

By Hader Glang

ZAMBOANGA CITY, the Philippines 

At least 10 militants belonging to a Daesh-linked rebel group died in clashes with the Philippine army, military sources said on Friday.

Four soldiers also lost their lives in the violence which broke out in the troubled Sulu province of the Muslim south, officials said.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines' (AFPs) Western Mindanao Command (WesMinCom) confirmed nine more troops were injured in heavy fighting at Sitio Dyundangan in Barangay Buhanginan, Patikul town at 10:20 a.m. local time (0220GMT).

The Abu Sayyaf rebels also suffered an unconfirmed number of casualties, according to a statement from Major Filemon Tan Jr., a WesMinCom spokesman.

According to Tan, troops from the 35 Infantry Battalion encountered around 150 fully armed Abu Sayyaf fighters led by the group's leader, Radullan Sahiron. The fighting lasted for almost 45 minutes, after which time the enemy withdrew.

Tan said out of the 10 slain rebels, only three bodies were recovered but added that soldiers continued to pursue the group while support units fired 105-millimeter howitzers.

Since 1991, the Abu Sayyaf -- armed with mostly improvised explosive devices, mortars and automatic rifles -- has carried out bombings, kidnappings, assassinations and extortions in a fight for an independent province in the Philippines.

It is notorious for beheading victims after ransoms have failed to be paid for their release.

The Abu Sayyaf is among two militant groups in the south which have pledged allegiance to Daesh. This prompted fears during a faltering peace process between the government and the country's one-time largest Moro rebel group, that Daesh could make inroads into a region torn apart by decades of armed conflict.