Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte declared the southern city of Marawi liberated from pro-Islamic State militants on Tuesday, although a military spokesman said 20-30 rebels were still fighting it out and were holding about 20 hostages.
Speaking to soldiers a day after the killing of two leaders of the rebel alliance, Duterte said the fight was over and it was time to heal the wounded and rebuild the city of 200,000 people on the island of Mindanao.
"I hereby declare Marawi City liberated from terrorist influence that marks the beginning of rehabilitation," Duterte told soldiers in Marawi.
Isnilon Hapilon, Islamic State's "emir" in Southeast Asia, and Omarkhayam Maute, one of two "Khalifas" at the helm of the Dawla Islamiya militant alliance, were killed in a targeted operation on Monday and their bodies had been recovered and identified, authorities said.
The 148-day occupation by Islamic State loyalists marked the country's biggest internal security crisis in years.
Experts say the government has for years underestimated the extent to which extremism has taken root in impoverished and underdeveloped Muslim areas of the Catholic-majority Philippines.
Military spokesman Restituto Padilla said that although the fight was not completely over, the remaining rebels were "stragglers" who no longer posed a threat.
"There is no way that they can get out anymore, there is no way for anyone to get in," Padilla told news channel ANC.
"So choking them to death at this point will be very key for our troops to do since the area is very much contained and very much controlled."
Padilla said Malaysian operative Mahmud Ahmad had been in Marawi City since the start of the fight and the military believed he was still there. The authorities could not be completely certain, however, but saw him as no threat.
"Dr. Mahmud is an academic, he's not a fighter," Padilla said. "We don't feel he is a problem."
Some security experts say Mahmud, 39, a skilled recruiter and fundraiser who trained at an al Qaeda camp in Afghanistan, is a candidate to replace Hapilon as Islamic State's point-man in Southeast Asia.
Reuters
Tue Oct 17 2017
Captain Arnel Carandang of the Philippine army 1st scout ranger battalion past damaged houses and building in Sultan Omar Dianalan boulevard at Mapandi district in Marawi city, Sept 13, 2017. REUTERS
MB Perlis maklum anak ditahan, serah kepada SPRM untuk siasat
Mohd Shukri berkata beliau mengetahui berita mengenai penahanan anaknya oleh SPRM dan menyerahkan kepada pihak berkuasa untuk menjalankan siasatan.
Semua jenazah dibawa keluar dari HRPB
Semua jenazah anggota Tentera Laut Diraja Malaysia (TLDM) yang maut dalam nahas helikopter di Pangkalan TLDM Lumut dibawa keluar daripada Jabatan Forensik Hospital Raja Permaisuri Bainun (HRPB) pada jam 4.35 petang pada Rabu.
Polis tumpaskan sindiket seludup dadah ke Sarawak
Polis menumpaskan sindiket penyeludupan dadah ke Sarawak dengan penahanan dua buruh binaan dan merampas pelbagai dadah bernilai RM1.76 juta di dua lokasi berasingan, pada Isnin lepas.
Buka tirai edisi ke-13, komited jadi pemacu WST2040
Ekspo dan Forum ASIAWATER secara rasmi membuka tirai penganjuran kali ke-13 di Pusat Konvensyen Kuala Lumpur untuk tiga hari dari 23 hingga 25 April 2024.
Empat ahli along didakwa lakukan khianat dengan api
Mahkamah menetapkan 23 Mei depan untuk sebutan semula kes bagi serahan dokumen.
Pemberhentian pekerja: 6,000 pekerja Tesla di Texas, California terlibat
Tesla akan memberhentikan 6,020 pekerja di Texas dan California menjelang pengumuman keputusan suku tahunannya pada Rabu.
Perbelanjaan isi rumah dijangka naik 5.0 peratus sepanjang 2024 - BMI
BMI melalui satu nota penyelidikan berkata ia mempunyai pandangan yang berhati-hati tetapi positif bagi perbelanjaan pengguna di Malaysia sepanjang 2024 memandangkan pemulihan ekonomi akan diterjemahkan kepada pertumbuhan perbelanjaan pengguna sebenar yang kukuh sepanjang tahun penuh.
Teliti projek penyelidikan, isu industri sawit negara
MPOB komited untuk menangani isu-isu industri dengan berkesan di samping memperhebat usaha penyelidikan dan pembangunan.
Banyakkan program, tarik minat pelajar dalam bidang STEM - Wan Azizah
Pendedahan pelbagai program berasaskan Sains, Matematik, Kejuruteraan dan Teknologi (STEM) perlu dilaksanakan secara berterusan.
Yen jatuh, pasaran berjaga-jaga awasi tindakan Jepun
Dolar meningkat setinggi 154.88 berbanding yen, paling tinggi direkod sejak 34 tahun.