MANILA: Philippine troops have rescued a Roman Catholic priest and another civilian who were among dozens of people abducted in May when hundreds of militants aligned with the Islamic State group laid siege on southern Marawi city, officials said yesterday. Presidential adviser Jesus Dureza and two senior security officials said without elaborating that troops retrieved the two late Saturday after a battle to recapture a key mosque and another Islamic building used as a command center by the gunmen in Marawi.
The two security officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly disclose details about the ongoing assaults. The government refused to comment on the reported rescue of the hostages, saying ongoing assaults may be jeopardized and troops and other hostages may be endangered if it releases details.
At least 860 people, including more than 660 militants and 147 troops and police, have been killed since the siege began in Marawi, regarded as a center of Islamic faith in the southern third of the largely Roman Catholic nation. Marawi's central business district and outlying communities now resemble a smoldering wasteland of disfigured buildings and houses.
The siege has sparked fears that the Islamic State group may gain a foothold in Southeast Asia by influencing and providing funds to local militants as it suffers battle defeats in Syria and Iraq. The United States and Australia have deployed surveillance aircraft to help Filipino troops battling the Marawi attackers.
An army commander, Col. Romeo Brawner, said yesterday in a news conference in Marawi that troops were battling to eradicate up to 80 remaining militants who may be holding more than 40 hostages. With fewer fighters, the militants have forced some of their hostages to join the fighting and have resorted to improvised bombs and booby traps to slow the military advance, he said. At least two militant leaders, Isnilon Hapilon and Omarkhayam Maute, were believed to still be with the gunmen in Marawi, Brawner said. - AFP