|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MANILA (AFP) - More than 1,000 people have been killed and nearly 450,000 forced to leave their homes this year in the southern Philippines, the Philippine defense department said Wednesday. A military battle casualty report stated that from January to August 11, soldiers and government militiamen suffered 215 dead and 839 wounded in fighting with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the smaller Abu Sayyaf group in Mindanao and nearby islands. The MILF suffered 870 dead and 44 wounded while only one Abu Sayyaf member was killed, according to the report. The report appeared to contradict earlier statements by a military spokesperson that the bodies of 20 Abu Sayyaf members were found in a shallow grave after the military attacked their camp in Basilan Island in April. Aside from the casualties in combat, the Office of Civil Defense said 381 civilians were killed and 356 injured due to the fighting as of August 9th. One person was also listed as missing. In addition, more than 439,000 people were evacuated from their homes at one point during the violence. As of August 8th, at least 340,265 of these people were still in evacuation centers. Damage to homes, schools, utilities, places of worship, agriculture and infrastructure was placed at about 89.363 million pesos ($2 million), it added. Violence in the southern Philippines flared up in March after a series of bloody clashes and an impasse in prolonged peace talks between the government and the MILF. The military subsequently launched a series of offensives, overrunning camps of the MILF. This prompted the MILF to call a "jihad" or holy war against government forces. The Abu Sayyaf group, meanwhile, has launched campaigns of their own and has seized dozens of local and foreign hostages. The group is still holding 20 Filipino and foreign hostages on the southern island of Jolo. |
|
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
