ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines
Philippine military on Monday confirmed the death of one of the leaders of Daesh-linked Maute group in the war-torn Marawi City.
According to Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines Eduardo Ano, three Maute brothers including Abdullah have been killed while another brother Omar Maute is still alive.
Military tagged Abdullah and Omar as the two leaders of the seven Maute brothers along with Abu Sayyaf leader Isnilon Hapilon -- the purported Emir of Daesh in Southeast Asia -- who laid siege to Marawi City on May 23.
“Based on the debriefing of those captured and surrendered, Omar Maute is still alive. Abdullah, Madi and Otto are already dead," Philippine Daily Inquirer's online quoted Ano as saying in a news conference on Monday.
According to Ano, the information about the death of Abdullah and his two brothers was relayed by three arrested Maute members and another member, who surrendered to government forces.
He said only Hapilon and Omar are leading the remaining militants fighting government forces in Marawi.
Last Saturday, two Maute hostages -- Catholic priest Fr. Chito Soganub and teacher Lordbin Acopio -- were rescued near the retaken historical Bato mosque.
The siege in Marawi City began on May 23, when members of the Maute group torched buildings and fired at civilians in a bid to establish a province for Daesh. This prompted Duterte to place the Mindanao Island under martial law until the year’s end.
Battle between MILF, BIFF
At least two Moro rebel group’s members were killed and four others injured in a clash with the group’s breakaway faction, which aligned itself to Maute militants, in central Mindanao.
The clash between Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) broke out in Maguindanao province at around 1 p.m. local time Sunday (0500 GMT Monday), Reuben Theodore Sindac, police director of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, said in a statement.
The MILF fighters have been fighting a faction of BIFF, led by Esmael Abdumalik, for seven weeks.
Sindac said Abdulmalik, tagged by the military a bomb expert, was a henchman of slain Malaysian bomb-maker Zulkifli bin Hir, also known as Marwan.
The military said MILF launched war against Abdulmalik’s group, after it declared allegiance to the Daesh international terror in the former's territory in 2nd district of Maguindanao province.
The MILF is cooperating with the military and police in maintaining law and border in conflict areas in the predominantly Muslim provinces in Mindanao.
In bilateral peace-building initiatives meant to put a diplomatic closure to the five-decade Moro issue, the MILF and the government have been engaged in on-and-off peace talks since 1997.
