The Battle of Tipo-Tipo was a military engagement that began on 9 April 2016 at Tipo-Tipo,

Basilan Island Basilan, officially the Province of Basilan ( cbk, Provincia de Basilan; yka, Wilayah Basilanin; tsg, Wilaya' sin Basilan; fil, Lalawigan ng Basilan), is an island province of the Philippines located primarily in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Re ...

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

between forces of the

Philippine Army The Philippine Army (PA) (Tagalog: ''Hukbong Katihan ng Pilipinas''; in literal English: ''Army of the Ground of the Philippines''; in literal Spanish: ''Ejército de la Tierra de la Filipinas'') is the main, oldest and largest branch of the ...

and members of the

Abu Sayyaf Abu Sayyaf (; ar, جماعة أبو سياف; ', ASG), officially known by the Islamic State as the Islamic State – East Asia Province, is a Jihadist militant and pirate group that follows the Wahhabi doctrine of Sunni Islam. It is base ...

militant group. The battle resulted in dozens of casualties, with at least 18 soldiers and 31 militants reported killed, and more than 70 others injured. It was the largest single loss of life for the Philippine Army since the beginning of the year, and came just a day after the group had released an Italian hostage.

Background

became a part of

ISIS Isis (; ''Ēse''; ; Meroitic: ''Wos'' 'a''or ''Wusa''; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎, romanized: ʾs) was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kin ...

in 2014 when nearly all of its members, including its leader Isnilon Hapilon, pledged allegiance to the said group. The Philippine government dismissed this news as a threat. The Philippine military pledged that on 9 April 2016, which that day is also the National Day of Valor, they will conduct an offensive aimed at wiping out the militant groups in the island.

Battle

Clashes erupted around 8am on 9 April as troops entered Tipo-Tipo in search of Abu Sayyaf insurgents. A group of more than 100 militants ambushed the government forces, sparking a 10-hour firefight, according to Major Filemon Tan, a spokesman for the Western Mindanao Command of the Philippine Army. News reports indicated an entire platoon was wiped out, with at least four soldiers being beheaded by militants. Among those killed were Ubaida Hapilon, son of the regional commander Isnilon Hapilon, as well as Mohammad Khattab, a Moroccan bomb maker and extremist preacher. On 13 April, ongoing operations conducted resulted in the death toll of 24 Abu Sayaf members. President Aquino visited injured soldiers in Zamboanga. Fighting lasted until 14 April.

Aftermath

On 8 July,

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...

report that "the fighting in Basilan that began Wednesday night is affecting three towns: Tipo-Tipo, Ungkaya Pukan and Al-Barka" and that "the armed men fighting authorities in Basilan are led by the notorious Abu Sayyaf leaders Puruji Indama and

Isnilon Hapilon Isnilon Totoni Hapilon (March 10, 1968 – October 16, 2017), also known by the ''nom de guerre'' Abu Abdullah al-Filipini, was a Moro Filipino Islamist militant affiliated with ISIS. He was formerly leader of Abu Sayyaf Group, before its bat ...

" The

Islamic State An Islamic state is a state that has a form of government based on Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a translation of the Arabic term ...

released a report on the fighting, claiming 40 ISIS militants had been killed in eight days of clashes and that the battle involved heavy artillery fire and airstrikes.

ISIS involvement

The

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant An Islamic state is a state that has a form of government based on Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a translation of the Arabic term ...

claimed responsibility for the clash on 9 April. In a statement by the group's Amaq news agency dated on April 13, it said that the militants involved in the clash on 9 April had bombed 7 trucks of the Philippine military, killing 100 soldiers with only three casualties in the militants' side. The Philippine security officials dismissed the claim as propaganda saying that there were "many gaps and inconsistencies" in ISIS' statement. Brigadier General Restituto Padilla, military spokesperson said in an April 14 report by ''Reuters'' that only 18 soldiers and 28 Abu Sayaff fighters have died at that time and no truck exploded. Padilla also said that the military hasn't established that Abu Sayaff and ISIS are linked organizations.

References

{{Moro conflict Moro conflict Tipo-Tipo 2016 in the Philippines Tipo-Tipo April 2016 events in the Philippines