 At that time, the then island city was in the middle of the Moro National Liberation Front Uprising prompted by the expose of the Jabidah Massacre on March 18, 1968.A number of native Moro leaders joined the MNLF rebellion, making Basilan a veritable warzone.The first-ever armed confrontation occurred around the heavily forested hills of Bagbagon and Canibungan in Lantawan on the island's western area.