COTABATO CITY: An 11-year-old boy was killed while a man was wounded after they were hit by stray bullets during an armed encounter between two rival groups of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in Shariff Aguak, Maguindanao del Sur, early Wednesday (Sept 30), a police official said.
Major Joel Lebrilla, Shariff Aguak police chief, identified the fatality as alias “Mohamidin” and the wounded man as “Aswad.”
Montaser Saliao, head of the Shariff Aguak Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (MDRRMO), said 329 families were displaced by the fighting and ensuing tensions.
Of the total, 241 families were from Barangay Lapok, while 88 were from Barangay Bialong. Five families from Barangay Malingao also fled to Bialong and were included in the latter figure, according to Saliao.
Most of those displaced were not staying in formal evacuation centres.
“Some residents were temporarily staying along roadsides, while others sought shelter with relatives,” Saliao said.
There was still no advice for the displaced residents to return to their homes as of Wednesday afternoon.
The MDRRMO also reported no damage to houses, schools or other facilities from the gunfire.
Authorities, however, continued to monitor the situation amid concerns that tensions could escalate and trigger another armed confrontation.
The fighting involved the group of Bro. Abid under the MILF’s 105th Base Command and the group of Samad Simpal under the 118th Base Command.
A ceasefire intervention was conducted by the Peace Security and Reconciliation Office of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, the MILF Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities, and the Provincial Reunification Council of Maguindanao del Sur. - Philippine Daily Inquirer/ANN
