Three suspected armed extremists were killed in a clash with Philippine soldiers in the southern Philippines before dawn on Sunday, an army general said.
Lieutenant General Corleto Vinluan, the commanding general of the Western Mindanao Command based in Zamboanga City, said the fighting broke out at around 6 am local time between the army forces and the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) gunmen in Maguindanao province.
In a statement, he said the troops were conducting military operations when they encountered 10 BIFF members.
Vinluan said seven among them fled, leaving behind three pistols, two hand grenades, and illegal drugs.
The BIFF, composed of around 200 men, is blamed for bombings and other atrocities in the Central Mindanao region.
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