Maute still holds 100 hostages
Kidnapped priest sighted alive; 150 militants still in Marawi
At least 100 hostages remain at the hands of the Islamic State-linked Maute Group, while a Roman Catholic priest abducted by Islamist militants has been seen alive, the Military said Monday. Air and artillery bombardment of enclaves occupied by the militants in the largely Muslim city of Marawi resumed Monday after an eight-hour truce Sunday to allow residents to celebrate the end of the Ramadan fasting month. The eight-hour truce was “generally peaceful” that led to the rescue of some residents trapped in the conflicttorn place, Malacañang said Monday.
To delay the advance of government forces, Lieutenant Colonel Jo-Ar Herrera, spokesman of the Army’s 1st Infantry Division, said the militants were deliberately burning houses and using improvised bombs, booby traps and hostages as human shields, five weeks into the fighting.
Lt. Gen. Carlito Galvez, chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines-Western Mindanao Command (AFPWestMinCom), said the area where the 100 civilian hostages are being kept remains unsafe and considered as a danger zone.
“More or less, mga ano, nakikita ko, hindi bababa ng 100 (hostages). Still very unsafe dun. [More or less, what I can see, it will not be less that 100 (hostages). It’s still very unsafe there],” Galvez said.
150 Maute fighters Galvez also said that based on revelations of hostages who had escaped, at least 150 members of the Maute Group remain holed up in the city destroyed by intense fighting between government troops and the terrorists.
“Yes, based doon sa revelations ng ano, ng mga nakatakas na hostages at saka at the same time na iyung nakatakas na Maute members na nagsabi sa amin yung mga locations nila, merong more or less 150 members pa (Based on the revelations of hostages and Maute Group members who had escaped, there are more or less 150 members),” Galvez said.
Hundreds of gunmen flying the black flag of the Islamic State (IS) group occupied parts of Marawi on May 23, triggering bloody fighting that has claimed nearly 400 lives according to an official count.
Father Teresito “Chito” Suganob, a Catholic priest assigned to Marawi, was taken hostage along with some parishioners early in the siege.
Herrera, spokesman for the military forces in Marawi, said the priest had been seen alive on Sunday in a part of the city still in the hands of the extremists.
“We don’t have details of his health. We were just told that he was sighted alive,” he told reporters, citing accounts from civilians rescued from the battle zone.
Herrera said the 100 civilian hostages are being used as “human shields,” ammunition carriers, and stretcher-bearers.
As the military resume offensive against the Islamic State-linked militants, Presidential spokesman Ernesto Abella assured the government forces will continue to rescue others caught in the middle of the conflict.
“The Humanitarian Pause was generally peaceful,” Abella said in a statement.
“As a result six civilians and one body of a civilian victim (killed by the Maute group) were recovered from inside Marawi. First rescued was a senior citizen (79 years old). Next were five other civilians,” he added. Abella said government troops have continued the clearing operations in Marawi, adding there is waning enemy resistance in the area. He said there has been successful clearing of 85 buildings and “more to follow.”
Of the 96 barangays, Abella said portions of four barangays remain as problematic areas.
After the eight-hour truce, fighting resumed with renewed fury on Monday, with government fighter jets and other aircraft seen carrying out bombing attacks.
“Our offensive operations have resumed and will continue so we can liberate Marawi at the soonest time possible,” Herrera said at a news conference in Marawi.
Indicators of winning AFP Public Affairs Office chief Colonel Edgard Arevalo said the Armed Forces is firm in its declaration that it is winning the battle against the Maute Group.
“As a matter of fact the victory is irreversible, it is just a matter of time before we will be able to complete our mission,” Arevalo said.
“Right now the terrorist group is feeling the might of the Armed Forces, and the Armed Forces closing in in their position,” he added.
Arevalo said there have been reports coming from those who have been rescued from the Maute Group that there is already infighting among their members and the leadership, especially on the issues of finances, waning logistical support, and logistics that they still have in their possession.
Maute Group members who plan to surrender or leave their positions are being executed, Areval said.
“That is one of the indicators that shows we are winning this fight. Apart from the fact or an indicator that indeed they already feel that government security forces are closing in their position,” he added.
Foreign fighters
Herrera said the bodies of two militants believed to be from the Middle East because of their physical features were found at the scene of an earlier airstrike, another sign that foreign fighters had joined the battle.
“These foreign terrorists involved in the hostilities are bomb experts. They are the ones facilitating the rigging of the buildings and houses with bombs,” Herrera said.
Eight foreign fighters, including those from Chechnya, Indonesia and Malaysia, were killed in the early days of the battle, the government has said.
Herrera said they were still trying to confirm reports that Isnilon Hapilon, a veteran Filipino militant said to be the leader of the Islamic State group in Southeast Asia, had escaped Marawi despite a military and police cordon.
Arevalo said there were reports that Hapilon has already abandoned the Maute Group in Marawi.
“(But) it is still subject to validation process. But we have received information that Isnilon Hapilon has already deserted his companions,” Arevalo said.
An attempt by troops to arrest Hapilon in Marawi on May 23 triggered the rampage by the militants.
Hapilon was indicted in Washington for his involvement in the 2001 kidnapping of three Americans in the Philippines. He has a $5 million bounty on his head from the US government and is on its “most wanted” terror list. (With a report from Genalyn D. Kabiling)