Duterte says Marawi liberated but battle continues

PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte on Tuesday, Oct. 17, symbolically declared a southern city “liberated from terrorists’ influence” but the military said the five-month battle against militants loyal to the Islamic State (IS) group was not yet over.

Mr. Duterte led rain-soaked troops in celebration in Marawi a day after the military claimed a major breakthrough as it announced the death of the head of the Islamic State (IS) group in Southeast Asia, Isnilon Hapilon, in a gun battle in the city.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I hereby declare Marawi liberated from the terrorists’ influence that marks the beginning of the rehabilitation,” Mr. Duterte said, speaking moments after explosions and gunfire were heard in the city.

SYMBOLIC DECLARATION
Military spokesmen later clarified that the fighting against 20 to 30 remaining militants continued along with efforts to rescue about 20 hostages.

“We are going to get them very soon. We’re making sure no hostages and fighters are left,” Colonel Romeo Brawner, deputy commander of the task force battling the militants, told AFP.

Asked by reporters if Mr. Duterte’s declaration was symbolic, Mr. Brawner said: “Yes, because we cannot really say that (the area) is 100% cleared because even when they declared the end of World War II, there were still stragglers.”

Another military spokesman, Major-General Restituto F. Padilla, Jr., said Duterte’s declaration was issued as a “go signal” for the start of Marawi’s rehabilitation.

Pro-IS gunmen occupied parts of Marawi, the Islamic capital of the mainly Catholic Philippines, on May 23 following a foiled attempt by security forces to arrest Mr. Hapilon, authorities said.

The fighting intensified in the next five months, despite Mr. Duterte’s enforcement of martial law in Mindanao, in what would become the nation’s longest urban conflict since the three-week siege of Zamboanga City in 2013.

The military said Monday Mr. Hapilon — who figured on the US “most wanted terrorists” list — was killed in a dawn offensive alongside Omarkhayam Maute, one of two brothers who allied with Mr. Hapilon to plot the takeover of the city.

Mr. Duterte had said Mr. Hapilon led an IS bid to establish a Southeast Asian caliphate as the jihadists suffer battlefield defeats in Iraq and Syria.

MALAYSIAN FINANCIER
Government troops were hunting down on Tuesday a Malaysian militant tipped to take over IS in the region following Mr. Hapilon’s death.

Mahmud Ahmad is the top remaining target for Philippine forces as the military said he was among six to eight foreign fighters in a battle zone comprising about 60 to 80 buildings.

“Mahmud remains… one of our high-value targets in the operations being conducted,” Mr. Padilla said.

Terrorism expert Ahmad Kumar Ramakrishna from Singapore’s S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies said if Mahmud Ahmad survived he would likely take over the leadership of IS-linked fighters in the southern Philippines.

The militant is also reported to be a university lecturer in his home country who was in charge of raising finances from abroad for the jihadists and recruitment.

On Tuesday, the military said it raised the alert level in a part of the southern Philippines as it warned against retaliatory attacks from sympathizers of the militants.

The US, a longtime defense ally of the Philippines, vowed on Tuesday to support the military’s final push in Marawi.

“The US government will continue to work with the Armed Forces of the Philippines in the final phases of this operation, and looks forward to cooperating in assuring the stabilization and rehabilitation of Marawi,” US embassy press attache Molly Koscina said.

For his part, Senator Panfilo M. Lacson, in an interview with reporters a few hours before Mr. Duterte spoke in Marawi, warned that “terrorism is here to stay,” despite the deaths of the aforementioned Maute leaders.

“Maski pa maubos mo na lahat [ng] Maute terrorists kasi borderless naman ang terrorism pwedeng merong umusbong na panibagong [grupo] at magrecruit ng mga bago. Kaya ’yon dapat ang tutukan lalo ng ating Intelcom nang sa gayon bago pa man umusbong ay maapula na nila,” the senator said. (Even if you get rid of all the Maute terrorists, since terrorism is borderless, a new group may be formed and new members may be recruited. Which is why this should be closely monitored, especially by our Intelcom, so this can be nipped in the bud.)

Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto C. Abella said for his part: “The declaration of PRRD marks the beginning of the recovery, reconstruction, and rehabilitation of Marawi. Our ground commanders will determine if it is safe for residents to return to the city as there may still be traps and unexploded ordnance in some areas. We will defer to their assessment and await their recommendation.”

“This is the time to channel our time and harness our energies to restore normalcy in the war-torn city and serve people’s aspirations for a comfortable life for all.” — AFP with Rosemarie A. Zamora and Arjay L. Balinbin