Cop Wounded in Clash Between Rival Moro Factions in Cotabato

COTABATO CITY, Philippines — A policeman was wounded in a clash between two rival Moro partisan groups in Nabalawag town, Cotabato province, on Wednesday morning, September 16. The incident occurred in a politically troubled barangay within the Bangsamoro Special Geographic Area. Local officials and traditional Moro datus reported that the two groups exchanged fire using assault rifles in Sitio Bentad, Barangay Olandang, Nabalawag. The conflict is believed to be linked to rivalries from the Bangsamoro parliamentary elections held on Monday, where the groups supported opposing candidates. Captain Steffie Salanguit, spokesperson for the Police Regional Office-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region (PRO-BAR), confirmed that Patrolman Alfadz Umal of PRO-BAR’s Regional Mobile Force Battalion 14 sustained a bullet wound in his right leg while responding to the incident. He was promptly taken to a hospital by his colleagues for treatment. The affected barangays in Nabalawag municipality, part of the newly established Bangsamoro Special Geographic Area, were formerly under Midsayap town in Cotabato province. Local executives in Midsayap and officials from the Cotabato Provincial Police Office stated that the hostilities in Sitio Bentad forced at least 700 Moro villagers to evacuate to safer, distant barangays, fearing an escalation of election-related violence. This incident highlights ongoing challenges in peacebuilding within the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), where political processes can sometimes reignite existing tensions among various factions.