As the commandos withdrew, they came under fire from hard-line Muslim militants called the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters. Some of the policemen maneuvered away in the dark and became entangled in a "misencounter" with heavily armed Muslim rebels belonging to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, according to Roxas.
When the fierce fighting ended, 44 commandos were dead and 12 others were wounded, national police Deputy Director General Leonardo Espina said. Some Muslim rebels said as many as 56 of the elite policemen died in the daylong clashes, which left about a dozen insurgents dead.