US troops join Philippine police to inspect IS dead

MARAWI CITY: US soldiers joined Philippine police forensic teams in checking some of the bodies of fatalities in the ongoing war on terror here to help identify foreigners who fought alongside members of two homegrown groups that sought to establish an Islamic State (IS) province in this predominantly Muslim city.

The clashes escalated into a fullblown war on May 23 when soldiers and policemen tried to arrest Isnilon Hapilon, the acknowledged head of IS in Mindanao.

On Monday, at least four US agents joined members of the Philippine police’s Scene of Crime Operations (Soco) agents who were conducting post-mortem examination on 40 bodies being kept at Capin Funeral Home in Iligan City.

Senior Superintendent Mary Leocy Mag-abo, head of the Soco team now based in Iligan, said “the US forces are interested to determine and know the possibilities that there are foreign terrorists, aside from Maute fighters, who fought and were killed by the military in Marawi City”.

The retrieval of bodies in the war zone continued even as soldiers have yet to wrap up clearing operations against the terrorists.

Zia Adiong, Lanao del Sur Crisis Management Committee spokesman, said teams retrieving the bodies were being careful to preserve pieces of evidence that could be used in the future either to identify the dead or file criminal charges against those involved in the terrorist occupation of the city.

“We treat the area not only as a battle area but also a crime scene,” Adiong said.

He added that bodies were being brought to Capin for forensic tests as well.

Since day one of the war on May 23, Adiong said 105 bodies and skeletal remains had been retrieved.

Most were those of Maute gunmen. — Philippine Daily Inquirer/ Asia News Network