Marine officer killed in ambush in Sulu

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines - Suspected Abu Sayyaf bandits killed an officer of the Philippine Marines in an ambush Tuesday in the island province of Sulu, where troops continue to hunt down the remaining leaders and followers of the bandit group. Major General Juancho Sabban, chief of the military's Joint Task Force Comet (JTFC), identified the slain marine officer as Captain Abduhari Sulani, a native of Indanan, Sulu and the commanding officer of the 81st Marine Company. Sabban said on Wednesday that Sulani was on board his motorcycle coming from Buhanginan village in Patikul, Sulu, when armed men ambushed him. Sulani managed to fight back despite suffering multiple gunshot wounds, said Sabban. Responding troops from the Army's Engineering Battalion brought Sulani to the hospital as well as an alleged wounded bandit, but the marine officer succumbed to nine bullet wounds. Sabban said marine troops from the Special Operation Platoon-5 scoured the ambush site and engaged assailants in a firefight resulting in the death of one of the suspected bandits. The troops recovered a caliber .45 pistol and several rounds of ammunitions from the casualty, he said. The Sabban-led JTFC expressed its deepest condolences to Sulani's family. "With pride, the Philippine Marines salutes him for his devotion in the pursuit of that higher objective: peace. He has given his home province the priceless gift of his life. Life is beyond any scale but that is one thing that Captain Sulani has offered," Sabban said. He added: "We raise our heads high with full knowledge that he did not die in vain. We pray for the quick recovery and the inner healing of his loved ones." Being a Tausug native, Sulani, "further exemplifies his valor and dedication by sincerely working for peace and development here in his beloved Sulu," Sabban stressed. He said the ultimate sacrifices of the Philippine Marines who were killed in Sulu "shall motivate further our troops to continue the battle against lawlessness, in legendary memory of the great courage and determination of those who died fighting for freedom and justice which our Marines greatly believe in." "We have been establishing the rule of law in Sulu. The culprits just attacked a fellow Tausog to death. Victimizing their fellow Muslim is too much to reckon. They are beyond moral condemnation. Justice must prevail," Sabban added. – Sun.Star Zamboanga