Senior Supt. Bienvenido Latag, acting police chief in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, said a suspect, identified as Amir Oden Gumaga, was killed in the 30-minute clash that took place in Barangay Sata.

Latag said there was no casualty on the government side.

Latag said soldiers and policemen were on patrol when they encountered the militiamen.

But the military has another version of the clash.

Maj. Randolph Cabangbang, spokesperson of the Eastern Mindanao Command, said soldiers from the 9th Scout Ranger Company were patrolling 9:50 p.m. Sunday when they clashed with at least 30 Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels under a Blocky Ayunan.

Cabangbang said Ayunan’s identity was provided by residents of the area.

He said based on field reports, two of Ayunan’s men were injured in the clash.

In Cotabato City, Col. Herbert Yambing, operations chief of the military-led Joint Security Coordinating Center, said the MILF could avoid clashes with soldiers if its members did not carry firearms outside their camps.

Yambing said MILF forces should also stay in their barracks to avoid being mistaken for members of private armies.

He said while operations against private armed groups continue, the military “is trying to communicate with them than to confront them in combat.”

“As much as possible, we want to prevent armed encounters so as not to displace innocent civilians and cause unnecessary casualties,” he said.

Dozens of armed followers of the Ampatuan clan are reportedly hiding in various parts of the province. -- INQUIRER