Malaysian troops attack armed group in Borneo

EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: EDIT CONTAINS CONVERTED 4:3 MATERIAL

Protesters rally in Manila, after Malaysian troops launched an attack on an armed Filipino group in Borneo.

Malaysian fighter jets bombed Sabah on Tuesday (March 5), before hundreds of troops moved in to end the standoff.

The Filipino group arrived three weeks ago, claiming ancestral rights to the land as descendants of the sultanate of Sulu.

So far no casualties have been reported in Tuesday's attack.

A spokesman for the sultanate said tanks and planes had surrounded the group.

SOUNDBITE: (Filipino) SPOKESPERSON FOR SULU SULTANATE, ABRAHAM IDJIRANI, SAYING:

"The truth is, some are scared. Who wouldn't be, given the odds? Two-hundred and eleven, against 100,000 plus. As Malaysian forces fire their guns, sacrificing their own lives in order to kill them, the Filipino group will get crushed. They will not be able to do anything."

Since the violence erupted last week, at least 27 peop