Thirty-five officers and men of the Philippine Army were killed by elements of the Moro National Liberation Front under Usman Sali.

[3] Usman Sali, the leader of a group of MNLF rebels, had earlier agreed to meet with Gen. Bautista at the headquarters of the 1st Infantry "Tabak" Division in Jolo for a peace dialogue.

Earlier, Bautista had invited Fidel V. Ramos, then Chief of the Philippine Constabulary to join him but the latter demurred due to a previous engagement in Zamboanga City.

[6] Then-president Ferdinand Marcos, in his eulogy to the fallen, stated that Gen. Bautista and his men were "killed with perfidy and treachery", and that the massacre "conclusively brands the MNLF as the violator of the ceasefire agreement".

[8] A stone memorial to those killed was restored in 2009 by the Philippine Marine Corps, Joint Special Operations Task Force-Philippines, and residents of Barangay Danag.