| Battle of Danag | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Moro conflict | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Abu Sayyaf | |||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Cirilito Sobejana | Radullan Sahiron Hajan Sawadjaan | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| Unknown | 40 | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 12 killed 13 injured | Unknown | ||||||
On April 17, 2020, militants from Abu Sayyaf ambushed Philippine forces in the jungles near the village of Danag, Patikul, Sulu, Philippines. Twelve Philippine soldiers were killed, and thirteen were injured.
Abu Sayyaf is a Filipino jihadist militia and an affiliate of the Islamic State based in Muslim-majority areas in the southern Philippines, including the island of Sulu. [1] Prior to the attack, Abu Sayyaf attacked Philippine forces on March 15 in Basilan, killing one and injuring two others. [2]
At the time of the attack, the 21st Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army had been preparing for an assault against Abu Sayyaf militants in the jungly mountains near the village of Danag when they came upon a group of forty militants. [1] The encounter occurred at 3:05pm at Sitio Lubong, and clashes broke out immediately between the militants and the soldiers. [3] A military report confirmed that Abu Sayyaf leader Radullan Sahiron and Hajan Sawadjaan were among those present in the militant's group. [3] The fighting lasted for an hour, and the Abu Sayyaf militants withdrew. [3] [1]
Blood at the scene confirmed the deaths and injuries of an unknown number of militants, according to Lieutenant General Cirilito Sobejana. [1] Eleven Philippine soldiers were initially killed, and fourteen were injured. One soldier died of his injuries shortly after the battle, raising the toll to twelve killed. [4] [5] Philippine forces lost several weapons. [3]
The Philippine Army dispatched reinforcements from the 11th Infantry Division, 5th Scout Ranger Battalion, 6th Special Forces Battalion, and 32nd Infantry Battalion to the site, and the army began combing operations around the site of the battle. [3] The Philippine government announced that the flag would be flown at half-mast in response, and Chief of Staff Felimon Santos Jr. hailed the fallen soldiers as heroes. [3]
Abu Sayyaf, officially known by the Islamic State as the Islamic State – East Asia Province, is a Jihadist militant and pirate group that follows the Wahhabi doctrine of Sunni Islam. It is based in and around Jolo and Basilan islands in the southwestern part of the Philippines, where for more than four decades, Moro groups have been engaged in an insurgency seeking to make Moro Province independent. The group is considered violent and was responsible for the Philippines' worst terrorist attack, the bombing of MV Superferry 14 in 2004, which killed 116 people. The name of the group is derived from the Arabic abu, and sayyaf. As of April 2023, the group is estimated to have about 20 members, down from 1,250 in 2000. They use mostly improvised explosive devices, mortars and automatic rifles.
Operation Enduring Freedom – Philippines (OEF-P) or Operation Freedom Eagle was part of Operation Enduring Freedom and the global War on Terror. The Operation targeted the various Jihadist terror groups operating in the country. By 2009, about 600 U.S. military personnel were advising and assisting the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in the Southern Philippines. In addition, by 2014, the CIA had sent its elite paramilitary officers from their Special Activities Division to hunt down and kill or capture key terrorist leaders. This group had the most success in combating and capturing Al-Qaeda leaders and the leaders of associated groups like Abu Sayyaf.
Jolo is a volcanic island in the southwest Philippines and the primary island of the province of Sulu, on which the capital of the same name is situated. It is located in the Sulu Archipelago, between Borneo and Mindanao, and has a population of approximately 500,000 people.
The Moro conflict was an insurgency in the Mindanao region of the Philippines, which involved multiple armed groups. Peace deals have been signed between the Philippine government and two major armed groups, the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), but other smaller armed groups continue to exist. In 2017, the peace council settled around 138 clan conflicts.
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The 2017 Bohol clashes were armed conflicts that took place in April and May 2017 between Philippine security forces and Moro ISIL-affiliated militants led by members of the Abu Sayyaf in Inabanga, Bohol, Philippines. Three Philippine Army soldiers, a policeman, four terrorists and two civilians were killed during the initial firefight. Subsequent firefights between the remaining militants and security forces resulted in the deaths of all the Abu Sayyaf insurgents. A ranking officer of the Philippine National Police linked to Abu Sayyaf attempted to rescue some of the insurgents but was arrested.
The Summer 2016Sulu and Basilan clashes were armed conflicts that took place in two battlefronts on the southern islands of Mindanao, Philippines from 21 June to 12 July.
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The 11th Infantry Division, Philippine Army, also called the Alakdan Division, is one of the Philippine Army's infantry units in Mindanao. Currently still forming, the Division is expected to complete its equipment and manpower requirements by 2022. It is the youngest of all the infantry divisions of the Army and will have 4,500 troops when fully formed.
The 2019 Indanan bombings occurred on 28 June 2019, when two suicide bombers detonated their explosives in two areas of a military camp in Indanan, Sulu, Philippines killing three soldiers and three civilians. The Philippine military confirmed it was two suicide bombers that caused the attack. They also believed that the attack was conducted in a similar manner to an attack on a cathedral in Jolo in January 2019. The military also blames the Abu Sayyaf for the earlier attack.
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