ZAMBOANGA CITY – The Army’s 1st Infantry “Tabak” Division (ID) has awarded medal to five soldiers for gallantry in action against the Dawlah Islamiya terrorists in Lanao del Sur.
Maj. Gen. Generoso Ponio, 1ID commander, pinned Wounded Personnel Medal when he visited Wednesday the five soldiers at the 1ID Station Hospital in Camp Major Cesar Sang-an that houses the division headquarters in Pulacan, Labanga, Zamboanga del Sur.
Ponio did not release the identities of the awardees except to say they belong to the Lanao del Sur-based 55th Infantry “Vigilant” Battalion (IB).
The five soldiers were injured in a clash encounter against some 40 Dawlah Islamiyah terrorists on March 3 in Barangay Tamporong, Madalum, Lanao del Sur.
Lt. Col. Franco Raphael Alan, 55IB commander, said the clash ensued when his troops chanced upon a lair of the Dawlah Islamiya terrorists while on combat operation in Barangay Tamparong, Madalum.
Alano said that the troops launched the combat operation in response to the reports from concerned citizens regarding the presence of armed members of Dawlah Islamiya in Barangay Tamparong.
He said the troops recovered improvised explosive devise (IED), IED paraphernalia, various caliber of ammunition, food rations, and various personal belongings after the clash.
He said the troops have also recovered a hammock of an infant in the terrorist’s lair. – Nikolai Gonzalo
