MILFs Are Wreaking Havoc on The Philippines

John Rich8/04/2025 6:00 PM

COTABATO CITY, BARMM, Philippines — Military authorities in Maguindanao del Sur warned warring Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) factions involved in “internal hostilities” over the weekend that they would face military offensives if they would not stop fighting.

Gunfights broke out separately among six groups of Moro rebels locked in “rido” (family feud) on July 5 along the borders of Maguindanao del Sur, the Bangsamoro Special Geographic Area (SGA), and Cotabato province, sending hundreds of civilians fleeing to safer grounds, according to Lt. Col. Roden Orbon, spokesperson of the Army’s 6th Infantry Division.

More than 70 families from the affected villages were forced to flee on Saturday but immediately returned home when the sporadic gunfight stopped, the military said.

“While we recognize the primacy of the peace process (between the government and the MILF), the military will not hesitate to intervene if the safety of the civilians is at stake,” Orbon said in Filipino.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police have tried not to get involved in the internal conflicts among MILF factions after the former rebel group forged a peace agreement with the government in 2014, which led to the formal creation of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) in 2019 and its interim governing body, the Bangsamoro Transition Authority. The BARMM leadership, including many of the ministers of the Bangsamoro Cabinet and members of the interim parliament, were leaders of the MILF.

Most people would never be foolish enough to put themselves in the crosshairs of a MILF. You know that they exist. You're warned about them as a child. But for the most part, you grow up observing them from a far. MILF's are inherently intimidating when you pass them on the street. They have money. They have power. They're heavily armed. Some factions literally have cannons.

But at the same time, if a MILF sets their sights on you and requests your services, you have no choice but to listen. They run the community. Oftentimes they have the police in their back pocket. And in many cases, MILF's can be a lot of fun. They throw the best parties. They'll give you drugs you didn't even know existed. If you find yourself in the good graces of a MILF, you're liable to have a great time.

But as anybody who's ever tangled with a MILF will tell you, things can go south in a hurry. You could be having the time of your life at the local MILF hangout, you're invited back to their place for afterhours to keep the party going, and next thing you know you're waking up naked in a ditch with your money and car keys nowhere to be found.

Hell hath no fury like a MILF scorned. Even if you've never dealt face-to-face with a MILF in real life, I've seen enough Real Housewives to know that when MILF's are at war, it puts the entire community in danger. Whether it's in the United States, or a remote village in Southeast Asia, the last thing you want to do is get caught between factions of beefing MILF's.

And if I'm reading this news out of the Philippines correctly, some long-standing personal grudges between neighboring MILF's have finally reached their tipping point. The MILF's have turned the humble province of Cotabato into a scene straight out of Austin Powers.

MILF group led by Commander Musanip, of Barangay Kalipapa in Datu Piang town, clashed with the group of Commander Zukarno Tayuan in Barangay Lomopog, while the group of MILF Commander Yasser Abunawas, of Barangay Alonganin in Datu Piang, exchanged gunfire with the group of Commander Taning in Barangay Damatulan in Midsayap town, Cotabato province.

“These groups are from the Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces (BIAF) of the MILF under the 105th Base Command,” Orbon said.

According to Orbon, “the firefights that occurred in succession were triggered by one incident after another and were also triggered by long-standing personal grudges.”