Manila: Suspected extremists have killed two soldiers in an ambush in Lanao del Norte province in the southern Philippines, a military general said on Thursday.
Major General Gabriel Viray, the commander of an army infantry division, said at least six members of the Islamic militant group Dawlah Islamiya attacked a team of three soldiers aboard two motorcycles while heading back to a military base in Munai town around 3:00 p.m. local time on Wednesday.
Viray said the soldiers, clad in civilian clothes, were in the village to gather intelligence information. One soldier survived the attack, he added.
Last December, Philippine troops killed 11 alleged members of Dawlah Islamiya in a clash in Maguindanao del Sur province in southern Philippines.
The military also blamed the extremist group for the bomb attack on Dec. 3 inside the gym of the Mindanao State University in Marawi City that killed at least four and injured some 50 others.
