COTABATO CITY (MindaNews / 1 April) — Explosions and heavy gunfire rocked the municipality of Rajah Buayan in Maguindanao del Sur on Wednesday as a police patrol car was bombed and fired upon while responding to an earlier attack on a municipal administrator’s home. Capt. Steffi Salanguit, spokesperson of Police Regional Office (PRO-12), confirmed that the officers escaped injury. This incident follows a recent ambush in Shariff Aguak municipality, also in Maguindanao del Sur, where five police officers were killed and three wounded, with the Dawla Islamiya suspected. The attack began past 8 a.m. after reports of an explosion at the municipal administrator’s residence in Barangay Poblacion. As Rajah Buayan Municipal Police Station personnel responded, their patrol car was hit by an explosion in Barangay Sapakan, followed by gunfire from unidentified armed men. Salanguit stated that no officers were injured, with only minor damage to the vehicle. Authorities also found a suspected improvised explosive device (IED) near the initial crime scene. The violence coincided with the scheduled assumption of command for Col. Michael John Mangahis as the new provincial police director of Maguindanao del Sur, replacing Col. Salman Sapal. Mangahis faces the challenges of addressing the tensions in Rajah Buayan and apprehending suspects in the Shariff Aguak ambush. Military and police units are conducting clearing and pursuit operations to identify those responsible. (Ferdinandh Cabrera / MindaNews)
