SECURITY forces on Sunday destroyed a factory for making Improvised Explosive Devices operated by the terrorist group Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters on the outskirts of Liguasan marshland in Maguindanao.
Brig. Gen. Cirilito Sobejana, Commander of the Army’s 6th Infantry Division, said a number of BIFF fighters might have been pinned to death after government forces pounded the periphery where the IED factory was situated around 4 am on Friday day.
“We were able to destroy the main IED factory in Southern Liguasan, so this is a big loss on their IED emplacements in crowded areas,” Sobejana said as ground forces continued to clear the site.
Sobejana said 60 to 100 BIFF fighters believed scattered in the vicinity guarding the IED factory challenged military attackers, igniting running gun battle.
“There was resistance but our troops maneuvered at a close distance prompting them [the enemy] to scampered in different places in the marsland,” Sobejana said.
He said composite troops had employed aerial and ground bombardment against the BIFF defenders to neutralize the target without collateral damage to the civilian population.
“A reasonable force was employed to neutralize the military target,” Sobejana said.
He said military operation that resulted in the destruction of the IED factory was done deliberately.
“We have to make sure that no civilians would be affected to preserve the peace process with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front,” Sobejana said.
Reports indicated that the IEDs being used by the BIFF in their bombing sorties in crowded places in Maguindanao were coming from the factory.
Sobejana said the troops has raised the Philippine Flag at the center of the IED manufacturing facility.
As to number of BIFF fighters killed, Sobejana said they could not still account for them because the area where the fighting took place was surrounded by water