By Canadian Press

Philippine military plane crashes, 17 dead, 40 rescued

Jul 4, 2021 | 12:47 AM

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The Philippine defense secretary says at least 17 people have been killed and 40 rescued in the crash of a Philippine air force C-130 aircraft carrying troops in a southern province.

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said rescue efforts are ongoing. He said the aircraft had 92 people on board, including three pilots and five crew. The rest were army personnel.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.

Chief of Staff Gen. Cirilito Sobejana did not immediately say how many people were on board the aircraft and if there were casualties after it crashed on landing shortly before noon in Bangkal village in the mountainous town of Patikul in Sulu province.

The plane was transporting troops from southern Cagayan de Oro city, Sobejana said. Government forces have been battling Abu Sayyaf militants in the predominantly Muslim province of Sulu for decades.

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“It’s very unfortunate,” Sobejana told reporters. “The plane missed the runway and it was trying to regain power but failed and crashed.”

Sobejana said at least 40 people on board were brought to a hospital and troops were trying to save the rest.

It was not immediately clear what caused the crash.

It has been raining in the central Philippines but it was not immediately clear if the weather in the Sulu region has been affected. The airport in Sulu’s main town of Jolo is located a few kilometers (miles) from a mountainous area where troops have battled the Abu Sayyaf. Some militants have aligned themselves with the Islamic State group.

The United States and the Philippines have separately blacklisted the Abu Sayyaf as a terrorist organization for bombings, ransom kidnappings and beheadings. It has been considerably weakened by years of government offensives but remains a threat.

Jim Gomez, The Associated Press