Practice

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT. Troops of the 3rd Marine Brigade fire their weapons during target practice at a firing range in Patikul, Sulu. President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has ordered offensives against Abu Sayyaf extremists in Basilan and Sulu provinces. INQUIRER/EDWIN BACASMAS

27 Soldiers

HONORING THE FALLEN. Soldiers light candles in honor of their fallen comrades during a mass Tuesday night at the St. Ignatius de Loyola Cathedral inside Camp Aguinaldo for soldiers who died in recent fighting in Sulu. Last week, the military suffered its biggest single-day loss when 27 soldiers were killed in an ambush and a separate encounter with Abu Sayyaf extremists in Maimbung Sulu. INQUIRER/JIM GUIAO

Rain

STILL WAITING FOR THE RAIN. Typhoons may have dumped rains in other regions but in the Cagayan Valley, the long dry spell continues. Still, a rice farmer in Dalfin Albano, Isabela continues planting his paddies. INQUIRER/VILLAMOR VISAYA JR.