18 January 2018•Update: 18 January 2018
By Hader Glang
ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines
The Philippine military on Thursday warned of an influx of foreign terrorists into Mindanao, the second largest island of the country, in the guise of donors, tourists, and traders, just to name a few.
Earlier, the military intelligence unit of the Armed Forces of the Philippines reported that nearly 50 foreign terrorists were operating and recruiting in the southern region.
"We will take this very seriously," Lt. Gen. Carlito Galvez Jr., Western Mindanao Command chief, told local reporters in a press briefing at the WestMinCom's media center on Thursday.
Galvez said they were now conducting massive combat and intelligence operations in various towns and provinces such as the Zamboanga Peninsula, Basilan, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Lanao, and Maguindanao.
"We are tracking these people... We are now in the right track that soon we can locate these foreign terrorists linked to Daesh or ISIS," he added.
According to Galvez, the foreign terrorists are mostly Malaysians and Indonesians but sometimes they are from Middle Eastern countries.
On Tuesday, President Rodrigo Duterte warned about an imminent terror threat in the country, saying terrorists might attack airports, ports and other public places.
Duterte, who called for an emergency meeting in Manila with concerned officials to address the latest security challenge, said the terror threat was coming in very fast.
Calling for intensified public vigilance, the president has also ordered the military and police to give no quarter to the terrorists plotting against the country.
