ZAMBOANGA CITY - A leader of the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) was killed in a clash with Scout Ranger troopers in Basilan province, a top military official announced Saturday. Brig. Gen. Domingo Gobway, Joint Task Force (JTF)-Basilan commander, identified the slain ASG leader as Razmil Jannatul alias Abu Khubayb. Gobway said Jannatul was killed in a clash Friday afternoon in Sitio Center, Barangay Baiwas in Sumisip town, Basilan. Gobway said the troops of the 5th Scout Ranger Battalion were on combat operation when they clashed with a group of ASG bandits led by Jannatul. He said the firefight lasted for around 15 minutes before the rest of the ASG bandits fled, leaving behind their slain comrade. "While scouring the encounter site, troops recovered the dead body of the ASG personality who was positively identified as Jannatul," Gobway said. Jannatul was a notorious Basilan-based ASG sub-leader who replaced Furuji Indama as the top leader of the group following the latter's death in October 2020. Gobway troops are pursuing the fleeing followers of Jannatul. Lt. Gen. Alfredo Rosario, Jr., Commander of Western Mindanao Command, commended the troops of Joint Task Force Basilan for taking down the ASG leader. "This will totally weaken the group and force the remaining members to give up their fight and save themselves," Rosario said. Meanwhile, troops of the 41st Infantry Battalion have recovered a high-powered firearm and personal belongings following a clash with ASG bandits led by sub-leader Basaron Arok. Maj. Gen. Ignatius Patrimonio, Joint Task Force (JTF)-Sulu commander, said the firearm and personal belongings were abandoned by ASG bandits following a brief firefight early Saturday at Barangay Bungkaong in Patikul, Sulu. Patrimonio said the 41st Infantry Battalion led by Lt. Col. James Erasmus Gagni launched a focused military operation after they received a report that seven ASG bandits under Arok were sighted in Barangay Bungkaong. "The tipping-off of the ASG presence in their communities is a manifestation of the [locals'] continuing support for us. Let us continue to press on the remaining ASG bandits and end terrorism here in Sulu," Patrimonio said. (PNA) }