Two soldiers die, 11 hurt as military air strike in Marawi misses target :AFP

July 12, 2017

Two soldiers died while 11 were wounded during a military air strike in Marawi City on Wednesday, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said. Col. Edgard Arevalo, AFP public affairs chief , confirmed an ordinance delivered by a military aircraft missed its target around noon time. “We are saddened by this unfortunate incident. We are attending to the needs of the families of our troops who died or were hurt," he added. On May 31,  11 soldiers were killed and two were injured as a jet on a bombing run unloaded its ordnance, and hit Army troopers fighting the ISIS-linked Maute-Abu Sayyaf Group. Citing an initial report from Marawi, Arevalo said the bomb was 250 meters off target and the impact of the explosion caused the collapse of nearby structures. "Large debris from  heavily reinforced buildings accidentally hit two of our personnel who succumbed to death in the process," he said. “Investigation is being conducted to determine the circumstances surrounding an incident where an ordnance missed its target during an air strike conducted at about 12 noon of 12 July 2017," he said. Arevalo said the 11 soldiers “sustained minor shrapnel wounds.” “All are ambulatory and are recuperating in the nearby hospital," he added. Arevalo said the military immediately formed a group to investigate. "Cognizant units from the AFP have formed a group that is now conducting initial investigations to determine the cause of the mishap and prevent the chances of it re-occuring,” he said. (Robina Asido, Celerina Monte/DMS)