Investigators focus on militants’ role in Cotabato City bombing

COTABATO CITY – Probers are zeroing in on the probable role of Islamist militants in the Dec. 31 bombing of a mall in this city that killed two persons and wounded more than 30 others.

The role of militants gained credence as local authorities unveiled on Saturday photos of two persons suspected of planting two improvised explosive devices (IEDs) inside and outside the Southseas mall.

One of the devices went off near the entry gate of the mall. An unexploded device was discovered about an hour later inside a bag left near a lottery outlet inside the mall.

Supt. Rolly Octavio of the city police office said the photos, taken from security camera footage in the mall, were “already a good lead to start with.”

A task force has been formed to focus on the investigation in the wake of condemnations by various quarters including Malacañang, Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) officials.

Octavio said the city government has offered a 1500,000 cash reward for information leading to the arrest of the two suspects.

Major Gen. Cirilito Sobejana, chief of the Army’s 6th Infantry Division and head of Task Force Central, urged the public on Saturday to guard against possible diversionary ploys to mislead investigators.

Sobejana earlier brought to fore a theory linking the bombing to the deaths of four Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) members in an encounter with covert military operatives last Dec. 22 at Barangay Tatak on the border of Mamasapano, Rajah Buayan and Gen. Salipada Pendatun towns in Maguindanao.

Two of the fatalities in that clash were foreigners: Abu Hud Zain, a Singaporean, and Abdulrahid Ruhmisanti, an Indonesian.

Barangay officials and Moro elders identified the two other fatalities as Salamuddin and Mohammad Ali, both surnamed Hassan. The latter was a younger brother of a henchman of radical cleric Abdulmalik Esmael, known as Abu Toraife, who leads the third faction in the BIFF, which banners the black Islamic State flag and promotes ISIS ideology.

The four terrorists were killed by a dozen or more soldiers led by a Marine captain heading a composite military intelligence unit of agents from different branches in the Armed Forces, sources told Manila Bulletin on Saturday.

The sources said the Marine captain was wounded in the chin and neck, while teammate Army Sgt. Melanio Diaz was killed in the almost five-hour battle.

Some traditional leaders and village officials confirmed that the Abu Toraife-led BIFF faction is “very active” in fomenting hatred against government through Friday congregational prayers’ sermons (khutba).

They named two of foreigners only as Ridhum and Hirman, both Asians, and the two others, Yunos Amagandhi and a certain Sharbatli, both of Middle Eastern lineage.

On Saturday, the wounded Marine captain, whose identity was being withheld for security reasons, was contacted over the phone by Manila Bulletin for details on the Dec. 22 encounter.

The officer said his team staged the raid after gathering “enough intelligence” that the BIFF combatants and their foreign cohorts were planning to plant IEDs in urban centers during Christmas and New Year celebrations.

He said his team had expected to engage not more than 20 enemies in Barangay Tatak, only to be surprised later when over 80 militants ganged them up.

“They (enemies) even used against us some of their IEDs,” he said, adding that the improvised explosives looked like firecrackers purportedly designed in urban centers during holidays.

The same Marine officer was involved in intelligence operations against the group of brothers Omar and Abdullah Maute of the Dawla Islamiya before and during the May 23, 2017 Marawi City siege.