MIRI: Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar on Friday credited the courage showed by Sarawak General Operation Force (GOF) personnel during the 2013 Lahad Datu standoff.
“Our personnel had fought bravely during the standoff to protect the country’s sovereignty,” said.
Khalid said this during the launching of GOF Miri new building at Miri-Bintulu road here yesterday (Friday).
He later on, presented the ‘Pingat Kedaulatan Negara’ to 24 Miri GOF personnel, who were amongst those fighting in the standoff.
Two of the Miri GOF were wounded during the gun fight with the militants.
More than 200 armed militants from the Southern Philippines arrived at Lahad Datu, Sabah on February 11, 2013.
The group, calling themselves as the ‘Royal Security Forces of the Sultanate of Sulu and North Borneo, was sent by Jamalul Kiram III, one of the claimants to the throne of the Sultanate of Sulu.
Malaysian security forces surrounded the village of Tanduo in Lahad Datu where the group had gathered and after several weeks of negotiations and broken dealines for the intruders to withdraw, security forces moved in and routed the Sulu militants.
Nine security personnel died during the standoff with the militants, while 56 militants were killed.