AFP: Only 80–100 terrorists left in Marawi

The Armed Forces of the Philippines is now ready to conduct arrest operations against suspected drug personalities linked with the Maute group following President Rodrigo Duterte’s statements that the Maute brothers have been using drug money to bankroll their goal to make Marawi City and the rest of Mindanao part of an Islamic State caliphate.

 Philippines — The Armed Forces of the Philippines on Monday said there are still around 80 to 100 terrorists believed to be in Marawi City.

“Inside Marawi, ground commanders estimate that there are about 80 to 100 still remaining in the areas that we are addressing right now,” Brig. Gen. Restituto Padilla, AFP spokesperson, said during the Mindanao Hour press briefing on Monday.

“But before, at the very beginning of the conflict, there were others who may have made their way out of the city because, initially, the first week, we did not have a fool-proof containment of the area and many of these have escaped, still pose a threat to some of the nearby areas,” he added.

Padilla clarified that the terrorists who may have secaped are only individuals or small groups but the threat they pose is very “clear and present.”

The AFP spokesman said that threats in Iligan and Cagayan de Oro have already been addressed after the arrest of bomber Abu Jadid and others in CDO. Bomb-making materials have also already been seized.

Children and hostages in count

Meanwhile, Padilla also said that some children and hostages are included in the estimated 80 to 100 terrorists left in Marawi City. He said the foreign terrorists are included in the total as well.

“May I also announce that we continuously get disturbing narratives from escapees that children as well as hostages are being employed in the firefight,” Padilla said.

“And disturbing as it is, our troops are doing their best to avoid any casualty among these children that are being employed. But if in the event that they are armed and they bear arms and are involved in the fighting, there’s nothing much that we can do. Similarly, with the hostages who are being forced,” he added.

Padilla assured the public that the proactive security measures are in place to combat the remaining fighters.

“We will seek to rescue them,” he vowed.

The Marawi crisis is now on its 49th day.

The military estimates 700 terrorists launched the initial attack on Marawi in May. Authorities said at the time that there were only 50 to 100 armed militants involved.