Marawi residents may not yet return

Operations to take 1 more month – military

COTABATO CITY: The military’s Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom) said on Wednesday evacuees from Marawi City will not be able to return home for at least another month as dozens of Maute terrorists remain in the city and a number of areas still needed to be cleared of explosives. Capt. Jo- ann Petinglay, Westmincom spokesman, said Lt. Gen. Carlito Galvez, Jr., the Westmincom chief and Brig. Gen. Joselito Bautista have not yet given the green light for the return of Marawi residents to their homes, as clearing operations en by ground commanders in Marawi about two weeks ago, that there were still 80 to 100 Maute members in the battle zone. “Because of the ongoing operations, there might be less [of the Maute members],” Padilla told reporters. A battalion of Scout Rangers was able to recover at least one kilo of shabu from a building used by the Maute terrorists. “This shows that our enemies, to keep themselves

alert all the time, to be awake in the night, are using illegal drugs,” he noted.

He also cautioned against allowing evacuees to return home, saying civilians and government troops could still be hit by the Maute snipers’ bullets from tall structures in Marawi.

Padilla said a group of civilians led by a “Mrs. Simara” and one alias Bin Laden, a local politician, were asked by ground centers and go into the battle area.

stray bullets that could target innocent civilians is still continuous...If we allow we will be distracted and they are putting their lives in danger and we already told them they could be hit by stray bullets,” he said.

“If we will be giving a go-signal to the civilians, they can be assured that they can go back to their homes, and for us to safeguard them while returning to their houses,” Padilla added.