Fears Isil has a new Asian stronghold as Philippines linked to US terror plot
For years it has been Islamic State’s forgotten outpost, but the perils of ignoring Isil’s growing influence in the Philippines came to the fore at the weekend when a Filipino doctor was charged with plotting terror attacks in New York.
Russell Salic, 37, an orthopaedic surgeon from the restive southern Philippine island of Mindanao, home to a decades-old Muslim separatist insurgency and extremist Isil-linked groups, has been accused by the US of attempting in 2016 to fund bombings in Times Square and the New York metro.
The Philippine justice secretary confirmed yesterday that Mr Salic would be extradited. He faces a life sentence after an FBI sting revealed he tried to transfer funds to two accomplices in America who wanted to create “the next 9/11”.
Counter-terrorism analysts have frequently warned that a prolonged humanitarian crisis in Mindanao – a province afflicted by clan warfare, Islamist extremism and government neglect – has created fertile recruitment grounds for terrorist groups such as Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, which pose an international threat.
The Daily Telegraph was given rare access to the refugee camps outside Mindanao’s Muslim city of Marawi, which was attacked last May by the Isil-linked Maute group, creating the worst security crisis to hit South East Asia in recent years.
Isil appealed for Muslims in East Asia to join the jihad in Marawi, adding to fears that the group plans to make the Philippines a regional base.
The city was all but destroyed in the battle between Islamist militants and government forces, causing 360,000 people to flee and spawning refugee camps which are feared to have been infiltrated by militants.
Frustration is evident in the bleak, sewage-drenched tarpaulin tents at the “People’s Hall” evacuation centre in Sagiaran, which hosts more than 100 displaced families just over three miles from Marawi.
Residents are angry at the militants who drove them there, but also frustrated at the government’s lack of aid. “We’re dependent on [government] handouts, and there have been none for two weeks. I had a little bit of money left to buy food, but it’s nearly run out,” said Aisah Riga, 43, a Marawi market vendor.
Jemel Hadji Ali, 35, used to sell fried chicken to support his five children, but now they are destitute. “I was only able to bring some of my children’s clothes. Here we have no means to make a living,” he said. His story of displacement is common across Mindanao, the southernmost and poorest island of the Philippines. It has long been plagued by conflict, experiencing Communist insurgencies, nationalist rebellions and brutal military crackdowns.
The Philippine press claimed that Mr Salic not only worked in Marawi, but was linked to the Maute group.
Eduardo Ano, the head of the country’s military, said that Mr Salic had also funded the “IS terrorist network” in other nations.
“He is providing financial support to several extremists or suspicious terrorists in the Middle East, in the US, Malaysia,” he said.
US court documents showed that Mr Salic boasted in messages to his alleged accomplices that the Philippines was “not strict” about controlling terrorism. Aid groups are racing to restore normality to the displaced from Marawi, but have been hampered by red tape and martial law.
“When it comes to Marawi, you have to understand the magnitude of the crisis – 360,000 people displaced in a matter of weeks,” said Pierre Prakash, from the EU’S Humanitarian Aid Office (Echo), which has provided £1.5million in humanitarian relief to Mindanao this year.
Meanwhile, support for Isil has risen alarmingly, even as the group loses territory in Iraq and Syria, with children and teenagers reportedly lured by terrorists to training camps.
Displaced villagers near the town of Cotabato, 100 miles south of Marawi, said that Isil recruiters were attracting disaffected young men with a sign-on bonus of £300-£400, then a monthly salary. Urban youth among Mindanao’s Muslims – known as Moros – have also been targeted through social media. The counter-isil coalition should pay attention, said Tom Sanderson, director of transnational threats at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies.
“It’s legitimate to say that Mindanao now demands a closer look by the international community … you have a persistent battle, threats of it spreading to other places, and you have the call to battle.”
The ultimate fear is that the humanitarian disaster in the remote and under-developed region will boost Isil’s efforts to make the southern Philippines a regional hub. “There is a risk that ongoing clashes in Marawi could fuel further radicalisation, not just within the ranks of those currently displaced but also neighbouring countries such as Indonesia and Malaysia, unless the root causes are addressed,” said Dr Champa Patel, a South East Asia expert at Chatham House, a London-based think tank.