No more deadline in ridding Marawi of Maute bandits —AFP

The Armed Forces of the Philippines has stopped putting a deadline on its operations against ISIS-inspired Maute group in Marawi City, after it failed to liberate it on Independence Day.

“For now, we will not set deadlines. We will ensure that we will be able to clear it of any armed element that still exists, and it may take some time,” military spokesperson Brig. Gen. Restituto Padilla Jr. said during Wednesday’s Mindanao Hour.

Padilla said that the June 12 deadline was based on AFP chief of staff Gen. Eduardo Año’s pronouncement when he made his last visit in Marawi City.

“Monday being a very symbolic and a very meaningful day for all of us because it is the Independence Day,” he said.

“But as we have clarified also during our other statements that regardless of whether the area is clear or not, we will assert our control of the area and commemorate Independence Day in a very meaningful manner,” he added.

The crisis in Marawi City has entered its 23rd day on Wednesday after the Maute group attacked it on May 23, prompting President Rodrigo Duterte to declare martial law in Mindanao.

Padilla said that the terrain in Marawi affected the troops’ clearing operations.

“The military activities that are conducted in open terrains like jungles are a different story when it is compared to urban terrain. In an urban terrain where civilians are still currently trapped and may possibly be used as human shields or may be hit by crossfire, troops have to be very careful,” he said.

“Our rules of engagement are very different in urban terrain. We have to be very careful, we have to very judicious, we have to be very deliberate so as to avoid hitting innocent lives,” he added.

“And this is where the slow process of liberating Marawi is currently happening. Of the 96 barangays of Marawi, four remain to be problematic areas where forces of the Maute/ ISIS-inspired or Daesh-inspired group still remains,” Padilla continued. —NB, GMA News