Philippine priest recounts life as Maute hostage

By Roy Ramos

ZAMBOANGA CITY

A Catholic priest abducted by the Daesh-linked Maute terror group was in good spirits Monday after being freed, despite his ordeal.

Father Teresito Suganob, who was kidnapped in a cathedral as gunmen laid siege to Marawi City on May 23 and rescued by government troops Saturday, told government officials he was treated well by the militants.

But along with other hostages, he was asked to carry weapons and fight along with them during intense clashes with troops.

Military Chief Gen. Eduardo Año said that aside from using Suganob and the other hostages as human shields, the militants used the priest as “insurance to get out alive”.

Fighting in Marawi erupted May 23 following a joint attack by the Maute and Abu Sayyaf groups after government troops tried to arrest Isnilon Hapilon, considered by many the Philippines’ most wanted terrorist with a $5 million bounty on his head set by Washington. Hapilon is allegedly the appointed “emir” of Daesh in Southeast Asia.

Año confirmed Monday that Hapilon is still alive, leading the militants with another key leader, Omar Maute.

He also expressed confidence that the battle is nearing an end as clashes are now contained to only 10 hectares of the city.

“We just cannot really give you a specific timeline, but we’ll do it in accordance with our operational plan, and we’ll make sure that we save lives…especially the hostages," he said in accordance with President Rodrigo Duterte’s order.

Despite the reduced main battle area, Año said 50-60 terrorists are still battling government troops, and around 10 of these are foreign fighters, mostly Malaysians and Indonesians.

Foreign terrorists from as far away as Saudi Arabia and Yemen were earlier reported to have joined the local militants in Marawi as Daesh is squeezed in Iraq and Syria.

The fighting in Marawi has created a humanitarian crisis, displacing more than 200,000 residents and killing 869 people, including 673 militants, 149 government troops and 47 civilians.

The entire southern Philippine island of Mindanao is under Martial law until the year’s end.