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The military confirmed Monday that American soldiers engaged in a humanitarian aid mission were inside a military camp in Patikul, Sulu, but they were not part of a military convoy that was attacked by al Qaeda-linked militants over the weekend.

Maj. Gen. Juancho Sabban, commander of Joint Task Force Comet, confirmed a Guam National Guard report that an American soldier was inside a Philippine military camp when Abu Sayyaf militants attacked a military convoy in Bonbon village in Patikul last Saturday.

Sabban said the military convoy was on its way to Jolo where the headquarters of JTF Comet was located. He said the Guam National Guard soldier was inside the camp when the attack occurred and was not engaged in a firefight.

He was inside the camp. Maybe he got so excited that he thought that he was part of the ambush. The only elements ambushed were the first two vehicles. Yes, they were there because we are partners in humanitarian assistance project and they just turned over a school a few hundred meters away from the ambush site, he said in an interview on ANCs News at 8.

The Americans have been helping us in doing all these humanitarian assistance. They were there in...our battalion headquarters.

There were at least five or six US soldiers deployed in the military headquarters in Barangay Bonbon to help the Philippine military plan its humanitarian projects, Sabban said.

The unidentified American soldier was unharmed in the Sulu attack that killed four Philippine Marines and wounded 10 others.

The Guam National Guard soldier is a member of a platoon from the 1st Battalion, 294th Infantry Regiment that deployed to the region in May of this year. The platoon is assigned to the US Joint Special Operations Task Force- Philippines.

US soldiers come annually to the Philippines for military exercises but they are barred from participating in any military operation in the country.

Overstaying troops?

The leftist Bagong Alyansang Makabayan meanwhile called on government to investigate the presence of US troops in a known conflict area.

What were US troops doing in a war-zone? They are not supposed to have any combat roles yet their very presence in an area of intense armed conflict seems to confirm that they are engaging in activities that are considered prohibited under the Philippine constitution, said Bayan secretary general Renato M. Reyes, Jr.

Bayan cited a report from the United States Institute for Peace, a quasi-governmental organization which was mobilized by the US government to influence the Mindanao peace process between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.

In its February 2008 report, the USIP noted that U.S. policy instruments in Mindanao include diplomacy, conditionality of U.S. economic and military assistance programs, and more punitive measures on the counterterrorism front.

The report further stated that American targets also included so-called lost commands, who were linked to terrorism. American Special Forces under the Joint Special Operations Task Force-Philippines established expanded counterterrorism operations, providing the with intelligence, training, and weaponry. The objective was to assist the AFP in its efforts to reform, modernize, and enhance its ability to fight terrorist groups.

The report also implied that the US embassy in the Philippines knew of the extent of the activities of the US soldiers in Mindanao. The US embassy was also closely engaged with US PACIFIC COMMAND in counterterrorism training and defense reform with the AFP and was thus linked to a highly visible American military presence in Mindanao, the report said.

No need for further probe

Reyes said the US troops in Mindanao have gone beyond their mandate of training and civic operations. They are now active components in the combat operations vs. the MILF and other armed groups, he said.

The leftist group said the combat roles of the US forces can be seen in the embedded US Special Forces in Philippine combat units including armed convoys such as the one ambushed in Sulu. The US forces also engage in intelligence gathering to support combat operations.

The Philippine government must stop issuing denials on the role of US troops in Mindanao. The Philippine government should investigate why US troops are being placed in known areas of armed conflict where the probability of engaging in armed confrontation is very high. At the very least, the Philippine government must order the pull-out of US troops from Sulu and other areas where there are raging battles, said Reyes.

He said the real role of US Special Forces will be among the issues raised by petitioners in the Supreme Court oral arugments asking the high court to nullify the Visiting Forces Agreement. The oral arguments are set on September 19.

Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. said US soldiers can join in trainings, aid and development projects, sharing intelligence and other mutually cooperative venture except joining combat operations.

But in administrative movement, if they were ambushed naturally they have the right to self-defense, he said.

Teodoro said there is no need for the government to dig deeper into the issue, saying Sabbans explanation seems very logical and straightforward. He said he also gathered sufficient information backing up Sabbans account.

He added that he has yet to get a full report on the ambush and the wounded Filipino soldiers.

According to Sabban, five of the 10 injured have been airlifted to Zamboanga City while the other five are now confined to AFP Medical Center in Quezon City. He said he is confident that the injured will recover and will be back in action in due time.