One week after 'Ops Daulat' was launched to mop up intruders in terrorist-infiltrated areas, the situation in Lahad Datu and Semporna has returned to normal.

With 54 militant intruders killed and 97 others detained, security forces are confident the intruder incident in Lahad Datu will soon come to an end.

NONE Security forces have also detained 122 people for being in prohibited zones during 'Ops Daulat'.

In fact, there was no exchange of fire between security forces and the terrorists in the last 24 hours at the operation focus areas of Kampung Tanduo, Tanjung Batu and Sungai Bilis.

"We are trying to rehabilitate the situation and are confident we can achieve it," said Sabah Police Commissioner Hamza Taib ( right ) at a news conference at 4.30pm today.

About six hours earlier, at a press conference with First Army Infantry Division Commander Maj-Gen Ahmad Zaki Mokhtar, Hamza announced that Kampung Tanduo - the landing site of militant intruders, about a month ago - was free of the terrorists from southern Philippines.

Meanwhile, five schools in Lahad Datu and 49 in Semporna re-opened today, with only three schools in the 'Red Zone' remaining closed.

Nevertheless, Hamza has reminded the community not to go near the operations area.

Currently, security forces are retrieving the bodies of slain intruders from Kampung Tanjung Batu and as at this evening, 18 bodies were sent to the Lahad Datu Hospital and four more to the Tawau Hospital.

"One of the bodies bore a resemblance to 'Commander Musa' (an intruder chief with the rank of general)," said 'Ops Daulat' forensics chief ASP Hussien Omar Khan.

Since the intrusion on Feb 9, eight policemen have been killed in terrorist attacks, two in Kampung Tanduo on March 1, and six in Semporna the following day.

- Bernama