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1 dead, 1 hurt in Sulu military detachment attack

By Teofilo Garcia, Jr.

October 1, 2019, 8:51 pm

ZAMBOANGA CITY -- A college student who staged a “juramentado-like” attack on a military detachment was killed while a soldier was wounded in the province of Sulu, a top military official said Tuesday.

In Philippine history, "juramentado" commonly refers to a male Moro swordsman, who boldly attacks targeted occupying forces, expecting to be killed himself, considered a form of suicide attack, according to Wikipedia.

Maj. Gen. Corleto Vinluan Jr., Joint Task Force Sulu commander, identified the attacker as Fersauidi Arabani, sophomore student of the Mindanao State University-Sulu taking up Bachelor of Science in Information Technology (BSIT) and a resident of Barangay Asturias, Jolo, the province’s capital town.

Vinluan said the attack occurred around 12:45 p.m. Monday at the detachment in Kilometer 3, Barangay Kajatian, Indanan, Sulu. He was unable to release the identity of the injured soldier, who belongs to the Army’s 35th Infantry Battalion of the 11th Infantry Division.

“The soldiers on duty exerted all efforts to control the attacker, but the latter continued to attack them while shouting “Allahu Akbar,” he said.

Vinluan said a soldier on duty suffered minor wound on his right cheek during the attack. Irabani was shot dead by another soldier.

Police said they recovered a sachet of suspected shabu and a bolo from Arabani.

Vinluan said he was saddened by the senseless incident, adding it will not prevent them from conducting checkpoints and "other lawful efforts" to protect the community. (PNA)

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