IS-inspired Maute group ‘greatly weakened,’ says military chief

GENERAL CARLITO G. Galvez Jr., Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief-of-staff, said a repeat of last year’s Marawi siege is unlikely to happen soon. “It would take years for Marawi siege to happen again,” he said in a press briefing Monday, as the military breaks the “generational link” among the Islamic State (IS)inspired Maute. Mr. Galvez said the IS in Mindanao is “greatly weakened” following the military’s success in the Marawi siege. He added that the military’s counter-terrorism efforts is on a very high level. AFP Spokesperson Edgard A. Arevalo acknowledged that the Maute-IS is “in the process” of recruiting new members, but said the military is “bent on ensuring that they will not succeed.” As to the lifting of martial law in Mindanao, Mr. Galvez said he cannot comment as it is “a political decision.” He said, “For us, it has a very good, significant impact in terms of countering terrorism in Mindanao, not only terrorism, but also criminalities.” The chief-of-staff also noted that the passage of the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) will have “direct correlations” in bringing lasting peace in Mindanao. —