Justice Secretary Leila De Lima told reporters that this is the final schedule given to her by Assistant State Prosecutors Juan Pedro Navera, Irwin Maraya, Gino Paolo Santiago, Jocelyn Dugay, and Ethel Rea Suril after the inspection did not push through this week.
ABS-CBN News had earlier learned that the Joint Special Investigation Team, which also includes agents from the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), had sought clearance from the joint Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCH) of the Government of the Philippines (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) for the conduct of the ocular inspection.
Forty-four SAF commandos were killed in the clash with fighters from the MILF, its splinter group, Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF), and private armed groups (PAGs).
The SAF commandos were on a special mission to serve outstanding arrest warrants for alleged Bali bomber Marwan, whose real name is Zulkifli bin Hir, and his Filipino cohort, Abdulbasit Usman.
The PNP has reported that Marwan was killed in the operation.
De Lima created the Joint Special Investigation Team upon orders of President Aquino. The team is tasked to do a fact-finding investigation into the incident, and undertake the necessary case build-up for the fiing of appropriate charges against those found responsible for the bloody clash.
The clash took place amid a ceasefire agreement between the GPH and MILF; the ceasefire agreement is part of ongoing peace negotiations between the two parties.
Public outrage ensued following the bloody encounter after it was found that several of the fallen SAF troopers were "finished off" and shot at "close range," and their firearms, ammunition and personal belongings taken by the rebels.
source: www.abs-cbnnews.com
