Zamboanga City, Philippines - Ten government security forces were killed in two separate ambushes by suspected Muslim militants in a southern Philippine province, officials said Sunday. Seven police officers and one militiaman were killed Sunday when a group of about 100 militants opened fire at them in Sumisip town in Basilan province, 900 kilometres south of Manila.
Senior Superintendent Salik Macapantar, provincial police chief, said the officers were conducting regular patrols when they were ambushed.
"The entire team was wiped out," he said.
Macapantar said the police and the military have dispatched forces to hunt down the militants, who were believed to be mostly members of the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf rebel group.
On Saturday evening, two military engineers were killed outside their camp in nearby Tipo-Tipo town in Basilan province by suspected members of the separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).
Lieutenant Colonel Romeo Brawner, a military spokesman, said the slain soldiers were part of a team of military engineers who were constructing school buildings in Tipo-Tipo.
Brawner said the military construction in the area would not be affected by the incident, but he noted that the armed forces was considering deploying additional troops to secure the engineers.
"Despite the occurrence of such incident, the project will continue," he said. "Our development projects should be not hampered by such incidents."
The MILF is the largest Muslim rebel group fighting for a separate Islamic state in the southern region of Mindanao. The Abu Sayyaf has been blamed for some of the worst terrorist attacks in the country.
The military has often alleged that the two groups were working together, but the MILF leadership has denied any official ties with the Abu Sayyaf.
A number of the MILF's commanders and members have taken to illegal activities in recent months amid growing frustration over protracted peace talks between the rebel group and the government.
Fighting between the military and the MILF have been on and off since August 2008 when peace talks were suspended after the rebels launched deadly attacks on villages in Mindanao.
More than 300 people have been killed in the rebel attacks and subsequent fighting and military operation. More than 500,000 residents were also displaced at the height of the hostilities.
