Posted on 05/25/2017 7:10:04 PM PDT by Lorianne
Thousands of civilians fled fighting in the Philippines on Wednesday as troops tried to fend off Islamist militants who took over large parts of a city, capturing Christians, seizing and torching buildings and setting free scores of prisoners.
Islamic State claimed responsibility for the rampage via its Amaq news agency, and President Rodrigo Duterte defended his decision to declare martial law on Mindanao, the Muslim-majority island where Marawi City is located, to prevent the spread of extremism in the impoverished region.
The violence flared in Marawi on Tuesday afternoon after a botched raid by security forces on a hideout of the Maute, a militant group that has pledged allegiance to Islamic State.
Fighters quickly dispersed, torching buildings and taking over bridges, a hospital, two jails, a church and a college. Duterte said he heard reports they may have beheaded a police chief.
He said Islamic State must be repelled from the Christian-majority Philippines and he would use all means possible to crush the Maute group and the allied Abu Sayyaf, whatever the consequences.
(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.com ...
Those dear little children-——innocent victims of adult insanity.
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Those aren’t tanks.
Nobody seems to care about children anymore no matter what nation....there are so many children no longer protected as once all knew to do....
I have no problem being corrected...so at least if your going to do that then put down what they are....thank you.
Authorities said ending the crisis was proving extremely hard because Isis holed up in residential buildings, had planted improvised bombs in the streets and had taken Catholic hostages.......Isis is holding between 12 and 15 Catholic hostages abducted from a church, according to the local bishop, Edwin Dela Pena...in the Phillipines.
Tank you..:)
Terrorists also attacked the Cathedral of Our Lady Help and abducted church staff including Father Chito Suganob and worshipers.
‘They have threatened to kill the hostages if the government forces unleashed against them are not recalled,’ Filipino Archbishop Socrates Villegas said in a statement.
His bio:
Isnilon Totoni Hapilon was born on March 18, 1966, in the predominantly Muslim Philippine province of Basilan.
He serves as second in command of the Filipino terrorist group, Abu Sayyaf. He speaks Tausug, Tagolog, English, and Yakan and graduated from ‘the elite School of Engineering’ of the University of the Philippines.
In 2001, he helped kidnap 20 tourists from a vacation resort. The 17 non-Americans were eventually released with ransoms paid...after one of them was beheaded...he then escaped the fire fight that followed.
In 2002, he founded a training camp for terrorists where he serves as one of the trainers.
His group are integrated with the worldwide network of Islamic terrorists, including Jemaah Islamiyah and al-Qaida...and Isis.
Catholic Prayer Ping for these Catholics who are trapped — or so it seems.
Not just the Philippines, everywhere that wants to live in peace must extirpate islam.
Know Islam, No Peace - No Islam, Know Peace
This one will get good-and ugly.
Looks like some intense moments there Salvation.....people are leaving in droves....remains to be seen the hostage issue....just thought I’d ping you in case you were interested.
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