Army brace for retaliatory attacks after death of neophyte DI leader
Peace and Order • 16:15 PM Fri Dec 3, 2021
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By:
John M. Unson
MAMASAPANO, Maguindanao --- Soldiers killed the new leader of the Dawlah Islamiya terror group in a brief encounter in Barangay Dabenayan before dawn Thursday.
Abu Azim Karinda --- who assumed last month the leadership of the Dawlah Islamiya following the October 28 death of predecessor Salahuddin Hassan in a shootout with soldiers in Talayan, Maguindanao --- died from multiple gunshot wounds.
Major Gen. Juvymax Uy, commander of the Army’s 6th Infantry Division, said Friday personnel of the 6th Infantry Battalion were to surround the hideout of Karinda in Barangay Dabenayen when he and his companions opened fire, sparking a gunfight.
Four of Karinda’s henchmen, Fahad Salipada, Hamsallah Ganoy Salangani, Salah Salipada and a certain Tatoks, also perished in the ensuing firefight.
Karinda was trained in fabrication of improvised explosives devices by the Malaysian terrorist Zulkifli bin Hir, or “Marwan,” who was killed by members of the police’s Special Action Force on January 25, 2015 in Pidsandawan area also in this municipality.
He took over last month the Dawlah Islamiya’s leadership, left vacant by the death of Hassan, who was wanted for more than 30 heinous cases, including multiple murders, in different courts in central Mindanao.
The Dawlah Islamiya, fashioned from the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, is tagged in deadly bomb attacks in the region in recent years.
It has a reputation for bombing commercial establishments and public conveyances if owners refuse to shell out “protection money” on monthly basis.
“We are expecting a retaliation for the death of Karinda. He was the biggest fish in this terror group,” Uy said
Uy said the cadavers of Karinda and his companions were immediately turned over to local officials and community elders in Mamasapano for proper burial. (John Unson)