Philippine troops clashed Saturday with Abu Sayyaf rebels, holding 11 US and Filipino hostages, killing two guerrillas and capturing six others, military sources said.
Soldiers stormed Lanhil, an islet off the main Abu Sayyaf stronghold of Basilan island before dawn, Colonel Roland Detabali, the assistant chief for operations said.
Six firearms were captured from the Abu Sayyaf, a self-styled Muslim insurgency group, who have suspected links with Osama bin Laden, the main suspect in the September 11 terror attacks in the United States, Detabali said.
The rebels are believed to have fled Basilan, where a massive military operation is underway to recover the two Americans and nine Filipino hostages.
The captives, including American missionary couple Martin and Gracia Burnham, are the remnants of an Abu Sayyaf kidnapping spree that began in May.
While some hostages were freed, reportedly for ransom, one American and over a dozen Filipino hostages have since been killed by the Abu Sayyaf.
In a related development, soldiers hunting for the Abu Sayyaf in Basilan clashed with another Muslim rebel group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) on Saturday.
Regional military chief Lieutenant General Roy Cimatu said soldiers confronted an MILF patrol, which is fighting for a separate Islamic state in the south, and the rebels suffered an undetermined number of casualties.
It was not clear if the MILF were defending the Abu Sayyaf or if the clash was an accident. The 12,500-strong MILF, which has previously denied any ties with the Abu Sayyaf, have signed a ceasefire with the government and have opened peace talks -- ZAMBOANGA, Philippines, (AFP)
