BLACK HAWKS. Two S70i Black Hawk helicopters circle over Zamboanga City before landing at the Edwin Andrew Air Base on Thursday (Nov. 4, 2021). Maj. Gen. Alfredo Rosario Jr., Western Mindanao Command chief, announced Friday (Nov. 5, 2021) the deployment of the two helicopters to the Tactical Operations Wing - Western Mindanao (TOW-WM) unit of the command. (Photo courtesy of Westmincom) ZAMBOANGA CITY - The Armed Forces of the Philippines' (AFP) Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom) got a capability boost both in combat operations and disaster response with the arrival of two Black Hawk utility helicopters. On Friday, Maj. Gen. Alfredo Rosario Jr., Westmincom chief, announced that the Tactical Operations Wing - Western Mindanao (TOW-WM), the major air force unit under the command, had received the two S70i Black Hawk utility helicopters from the AFP general headquarters. Rosario said the deployment of the two Black Hawk helicopters would boost the capability of the military in this
Google map of Lamitan City, Basilan ZAMBOANGA CITY - Two members of the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) have surrendered with the support of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in Basilan province, military officials announced Tuesday. Brig. Gen. Domingo Gobway, Joint Task Force (JTF)-Basilan commander, said the good rapport between the military and the MILF in Basilan led to the surrender of ASG members Jaid Balatong, 40; and Abdul Munib, 25. "The MILF is actively supporting the military's campaign against terrorism by convincing the remaining members of the (ASG) terror groups to surrender," Gobway said. Balatong, of Al-Barka II municipality, is a follower of Abdullah Indanan, while Munib of Tipo-Tipo town is under the group of ASG leader Furuji Indama. Gobway said Balatong and Munib surrendered and turned over an M16 rifle and a .45-caliber pistol Monday afternoon to troopers of the Army's 68th Infantry Battalion in Barangay Campo Uno, Lamitan City, Basilan. He said fi