Catapang to BIFF: We will pursue you anywhere you go

By Alex Ho, 9News Online

The gloves are off.

Exactly a month after the infamous Mamasapano encounter,  Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief of staff General Gregorio Pio Catapang Jr. gives the green light for an all-out offensive against the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF).

Catapang told the Western Mindanao Command (Wesmincom) on Wednesday (February 25) to hunt down members of the radical armed group holing up in the hinterlands of Maguindanao and Cotabato provinces.

He said the move was aimed at protecting civilians against the "violent attacks perpetrated by the BIFF."

"I am saddened by the news that at least 20,000 people had been displaced. We will do our best to protect the people and allow them to go back to their homes."

Taking stock of the #SAF44 tragedy, Catapang reminded all unit commanders of the military to conduct the joint law enforcement operations in coordination with the Philippine National Police (PNP) and proceed within the framework of the ceasefire agreement with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

The AFP chief also called for unity against a common enemy: lawlessness and terrorism.

"Let us show the enemies of the state that we are a formidable force that will continuously pursue them anywhere they go," Catapang said.

Before this, calls for an all-out attack against the MILF resurfaced amid public outrage over the Mamasapano clash on January 25 which left 44 police commandos dead. Reports said that #SAF44 troopers were pinned down and decimated in Barangay Tukanalipao by an overwhelming force of MILF, BIFF, and private armed groups.

But President Benigno Aquino III stood firm that the ongoing peace talks with the MILF - together with the crafting of a Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) should continue.

The last time the government declared an all-out atack against Islamist rebels was in 2000 under the administration of then President Joseph Estrada.

Later in the day, the Army's 6th Infantry Division said it started covert operations against the outlawed BIFF immediately after Catapang's marching orders.

"We appeal to the civilian populace in areas where the BIFF operates to help the military neutralize this terrorist group," Division spokesperson Capt. Joann Petinglay said in a radio interview.

For its part, BIFF spokesperson Abu Misri Mama said his group was not afraid of the "all-out war," saying they will fight to the last man by employing guerilla warfare. - With a report from the Philippine News Agency