Monitoring the war: The Mindanao base command blitzkrieg this weekend & today, MILF said “unsanctioned”: Everybody wants war now, except the residents

      It looked like a Mindanao base command blitzkrieg; unsanctioned according to the MILF Central Command.  

     As of 8:00 pm this evening (August 18) , the MILF troops in Lanao del Norte have been ordered to pull out, according to MILF chief peace negotiator  Mohagher  Iqbal.             (Photo by www.luwaran.com used here for non-commercial purposes.)

As of 10:10 pm, MILF “Commander Bravo” denied he led the attacks in Lanao del Norte.

      This after:

1)the attacks by MILF base commands of five towns in Lanao del Norte resulting in 23 deaths of civilians and 3 combatants and displacing 7,000 residents;

2)the occupation of Kolambugan; the ransacking of a pharmacy and the town hall leaving two dead in  Maasim, Sangani by the MILF;

3)the ambush of the 5^th IB in Lanao del Sur by MILF troops yesterday

 

(Sunday) killing three soldiers and three militia; 4)bombings in Iligan;

5)the bombing of transmission  towers of Transco resulting in tripping of power in Mindanao, as reported by the NDCC.

 

      The MILF spokespersons the whole day reiterated that their Central Committee never ordered and did not sanction such attacks while admitting that the assaults were led by an MILF commander (“Commander Bravo,  who at  10:10 pm this evening, denied he led the attacks) that were born of the  “frustration of the MILF forces”.

    

       I try not to comment on the military aspect of the war but even a layperson can see  that each of the offensives, at the very least on the ground commander level,  was a planned operation; the synchronicity or timing of the  attacks showed, at the very least at the level of the Mindanao command,   coordination and will, not chance or coincidence (which the MILF Central Command said it did not order).

 

      AFP ChIef of Staff General Alexander Yano declared the attacks a declaration of war on the part of the MILF; the President came out tv and condemned the attacks as treacherous and vowed to “crush the attempts”  

 

     Not to be outdone, warmongers among radio commentators called for total war against the MILF; politicians fanned  the flames of war by blaming the negotiations that took place with the MILF.  

 

        What was the purpose of  the Mindanao base command military campaign? To send a message, a costly one. What was their message? I don’t know:  “What we cannot win by peaceful means we have to wrest through war”  . “What are these negotiations and agreements for,  if….”  “Stop treating us in this  manner”.   I do not know.

 

       But i know that there must be “limits to war” :

 

      Quote “3.1 The following are considered prohibited hostile acts:

        Quote “3.1.1 Terroristic acts such as kidnapping, hijacking, piracy, sabotage, arson, bombings, grenade throwing, robberies, liquidations, assassinations; unjustified arrest, torture, unreasonable search and seizure, summary execution, as well as burning of houses, places of worship and educational institutions, destruction of properties, and abuse of civilians.

       Quote “3.1.2 Aggressive action such as attacks, raids, ambuscades, landmining, and offensive military actions such as shelling, reconnoitering, and unjustified massing of troops.

        Quote “3.2 The following are considered prohibited provocative acts:

          Quote “3.2.1 Display of MILF flag in non-identified MILF areas.

           Quote “3.2.2 Providing sanctuary or assistance to criminal or lawless elements.

          Quote “3.2.3 Massive deployment and/or movement of GRP and MILF forces which are not normal administrative functions and activities

        Quote “3.2.4 Public pronouncements that will tend to undermine the sincerity or credibility of either party in implementing the cessation of hostilities.

           Quote 3.2.5 Other acts that endanger the safety and security of the people and their properties; and/or that which contribute to the deterioration of peace and order, such as blatant display of firearms.

     (From the “Implementing guidelines on the security aspect of the GRP-MILF Tripoli Agreement of Peace of 2001”  entered into between the government and the MILF on August 7, 2001 in Putrajaya, Malaysia.)