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7 Abu Sayyaf members killed in Philippines
The Abu Sayyaf group has been blamed for the worst terror attacks in Philippine history including bombings and mass kidnappings.
Seven members of the Muslim extremist Abu Sayyaf group were slain on Saturday in a clash at sea with navy commandos and military intelligence agents in the southern Philippines, the armed forces announced.
The members of Abu Sayyaf, a group linked to the Al-Qaeda terror network, were in a motorboat off the southern islands of Tawi-tawi when they were intercepted by the military.
The resulting clash left seven dead, a military statement said.
Bodies of the men, along with two rifles and a grenade launcher, were recovered from the site. Among the dead was the leader of the band, named as Abu Hubaida, the military said.
The Abu Sayyaf group has been blamed for the worst terror attacks in Philippine history including bombings and mass kidnappings.
However its leaders are now on the run from a military offensive in the southern island of Jolo.
Military chief General Hermogenes Esperon said membership of the group was believed to be down to about 450.
