.png){kind=logo}
3 days ago
7
Upgrade to High-Speed Internet for only ₱1499/month!
Enjoy up to 100 Mbps fiber broadband, perfect for browsing, streaming, and gaming.
Visit Suniway.ph to learn
John Unson - Philstar.com
June 10, 2026 | 7:01pm
The policeman wounded in an ambush on Tuesday night, June 9, by members of the Dawlah Islamiya is now confined to a hospital.
Philstar.com / John Unson
COTABATO CITY, Philippines — A police officer was wounded in an ambush in Barangay Salbu, Datu Saudi Ampatuan, Maguindanao del Sur, late Tuesday, June 9, in an attack that authorities suspect was carried out by remnants of the Dawlah Islamiya.
Local executives and Capt. Steffie Salanguit, spokesperson of the Police Regional Office-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region (PRO-BAR), separately told reporters on Wednesday that the victim, Staff Sgt. Samsudin Utto Abdullah, was driving home from duty at the Datu Saudi Ampatuan Municipal Police Station when gunmen positioned along a stretch of highway in Sitio Lower Salbu, Barangay Salbu, opened fire on his vehicle.
Datu Saudi Ampatuan is one of the 24 municipalities in Maguindanao del Sur in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, where authorities continue to monitor the presence of a small number of alleged Dawlah Islamiya members.
Abdullah's attackers immediately fled the scene. He was rushed by fellow policemen and barangay officials to the Bangsamoro Regional Hospital in nearby Shariff Aguak, Maguindanao del Sur, for treatment.
Local executives and intelligence officials from PRO-BAR and the Army’s 601st Infantry Brigade said they believe Abdullah was targeted by remnants of the Dawlah Islamiya, some of whose relatives had been arrested in recent law enforcement operations conducted by the Datu Saudi Ampatuan police force in which Abdullah had participated.
Barangay officials told reporters that Abdullah had helped in the arrest of five suspected shabu dealers in recent months. They also alleged that some drug trafficking activities in the area have been linked to remaining Dawlah Islamiya members who have yet to surrender to either PRO-BAR or the Army’s 6th Infantry Division, which are implementing programs aimed at encouraging former extremists to return to mainstream society.
