China boards Phl resupply boat; Navy men hurt

The latest attempt by China Coast Guard to block the delivery of food and provisions to the BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal last Monday left at least eight Filipinos injured - with one losing a finger - and several others disarmed and their inflatable boats punctured by the Chinese, according to military sources.

- MICHAEL PUNONGBAYAN and PIA LEE-BRAGO

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and Department of National Defense, however, have yet to provide details on the incident, which reportedly also involved the collision of a Chinese ship with a Philippine supply vessel.

A source said injured were seven members of the Navy's Special Operations Group and a soldier who lost a finger.

The AFP confirmed one Navy personnel "sustained severe injury" and was "safely evacuated" for treatment.

China itself had already admitted that its personnel boarded, inspected and supposedly drove away Philippine Navy vessels. It blamed the Philippines for the collision.

Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro Jr., in a statement, lashed out at the CCG for its “dangerous and reckless behavior” while the AFP slammed its “deceptive and misleading claims.”

China’s latest act of aggression happened two days after its supposed enforcement of a “maritime regulation” allowing its coast guard to seize foreign ships that “illegally enter China’s territorial waters” and to detain their crews for up to 60 days.

“The CCG’s continued aggressive behavior and unprofessional conduct towards a legitimate humanitarian mission is unacceptable. They must restrain themselves to avoid escalating tensions” in the West Philippine Sea, AFP public affairs office chief Col. Xerxes Trinidad said in a statement.

“The AFP remains committed to maintaining our presence in the WPS, adhering to international law to protect our seas, our rights and our future,” he added.

Ayungin Shoal is within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone, as affirmed in a July 2016 ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration based in The Hague.

In a statement, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) slammed China for its provocative actions and distortion of facts.