COTABATO CITY — The soldier who went missing during gunfights on with Dawlah Islamiya terrorists in Datu Hoffer, Maguindanao del Sur last Tuesday, was found lifeless in a secluded spot on Wednesday afternoon.

Moro villagers helping the Army’s 601st Infantry Brigade and personnel of the 90th Infantry Battalion (IB) spotted Cpl. Junie C. Mangalay, Jr., lying on a grassy area west of Barangay Tuayan Mother, his rifle and other personal belongings missing.

A companion of Mr. Mangalay, Cpl. Ryan P. Bagual, also a member of the 90th IB, was the first to fall in their initial encounter with remaining members of the long defunct Dawlah Islamiya in Barangay Tuayan Mother on Tuesday morning.

Officials of the 90th IB and the commander of the 6th Infantry Division (ID), Major Gen. Jose Vladimir R. Cagara, separately told reporters on Thursday that they are trying to overcome their sadness over the demise of the two soldiers with the thought of their “supreme sacrifice” in line of duty.

“They are both heroes for having fulfilled their pledge to perform their duties as soldiers even at the cost of their lives.” Mr. Cagara said.

Municipal officials overtly supporting the 6th ID’s anti-terror operation in Datu Hoffer told reporters on Thursday that Mr. Mangalay, carrying a large binocular, was crawling towards the location of the Dawlah Islamiya terrorists to observe them and lost contact with his companions when he retreated to a nearby hinterland when he saw gunmen approaching him from two directions.

The two-day skirmishes in Barangay Tuayan Mother erupted when members of the terror group attacked the personnel of the 90th IB dispatched to check on reports by villagers about the presence in the area of terrorists, asking money and rice from them at gunpoint.

Local executives warned last week of a plot by the few remaining members of the now nonfunctional Dawlah Islamiya to stir an impression that they are still capable perpetrating terror attacks despite the surrender of 839 companions to the 6th ID and the Police Regional Office-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region.

Officials of the 6th ID said they will facilitate the immediate turnover of the remains of Mr. Mangalay to his family in Tupi, South Cotabato.

Mr. Bagual, a Muslim, was immediately buried by his relatives in Barangay Poblacion in President Quirino in Sultan Kudarat, not too distant from Maguindanao del Sur, in keeping with an Islamic tradition of burying the dead within 24 hours after death. — John Felix M. Unson

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