THREE members of a jihadist group calling itself Ansar al-Khilafah Philippines or AKP, a group that has pledged allegiance to the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, were killed Saturday in an encounter with policemen and soldiers in Maasim, Sarangani, the military said Sunday.
AKP leader Mohammad Jaafar Sabiwang Maguid alias Commander Tokboy was not with the group of terrorists who served as rear guards when the encountered happened, said Major General Rafael Valencia, commander of the 10th Infantry Division.
During his rounds of military camps, President Rodrigo Duterte had warned not only of the menace from the terrorist Abu Sayyaf Group but also of the influence being exerted by ISIS among the Muslim radicals in Mindanao.
The clash on Saturday happened around 5 p.m. in Sitio Lebe in Daliao village, where the three still unidentified terrorists were slain.
Recovered from the slain terrorists were a Carbine rifle, an M79 grenade launcher, a rifle scope, a black flag with the ISIS logo and a spent shell for an M203 grenade.
Valencia said the civilians who saw Tokboy’s group of 17 fully armed men had told the military that some foreign-looking nationals were with them.
He said this was now the subject of military intelligence operations to identify and arrest the foreign nationals.
According to division public affairs officer Captain Rhyan Batchar, before the encounter joint personnel of the military and police had served an arrest warrant around 4:25 p.m. the same day and at the same place against Mustapha Gansing.
Gansing was subsequently arrested for possession of UZI machine pistol and various subversive documents
Valencia said Tokboy and his men came to Daliao probably to visit some relatives as he was not from the place.
