From DWDD AFP Civil Relations Service Radio Website (Nov 28): 77th Anniversary | “Kaisa ng Sambayanan sa Pagsusulong ng Tunay na Pagbabago Tungo sa Mapayapa, Maunlad at Maginhawang Pilipinas”
CAMP GEN EMILIO AGUINALDO, Quezon City (DWDD) – The Department of National Defense (DND) is celebrating this month their 77th Anniversary.
Officials and employees of the Defense Department joined various activities in connection with their anniversary, like: tree planting, bloodletting and Fun Run, led by Defense Secretary Delfin N. Lorenzana.
As part of DND’s support with changes being instilled by the government, this year’s theme is “Kagawaran ng Tanggulang Pambansa: Kaisa ng Sambayanan sa Pagsusulong ng Tunay na Pagbabago Tungo sa Mapayapa, Maunlad at Maginhawang Pilipinas.”
A simple program will be held today, November 29, 2016, at the Armed Forces of the Philippines Commissioned Officers’ Club in Camp Gen Emilio Aguinaldo in Quezon City.
The National Defense Act, also know as Commonwealth Act No.1, was enacted in 1935 and the Department of National Defense was established four years after in November 1, 1939, through Executive Order No. 230 by President Manuel Luis Quezon. PAS / DND / MCAG
From DWDD AFP Civil Relations Service Radio Website (Nov 28): NEUTRALIZED | 2 ASG Killed during Maritime Patrol at Zambo City
BARANGAY MUTI, Zamboanga City (DWDD) – Philippine Navy (PN) component composed of intelligence, fast crafts and naval special operations personnel, together with police forces, had an encounter with the members of Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) under ASG sub-leader Marzan Ajijul, while conducting maritime patrol in the vicinity of Sitio Niyog-Niyog, Barangay Muti, Zamboanga City around noontime today.
The joint elements of PN and PNP sighted motorized pump boat around the said area with 2 suspected ASG conducting extortion activities to small scale fishermen when they were intercepted.
The 2 ASGs resisted when confronted and opened fire that made the joint element to return fire. The firefight lasted for about fifteen minutes that resulted to the neutralization of the 2 ASG members and the recovery of a Cal.45 pistol, hand grenade, and a heat sealed crystalline substance, suspected to be “shabu.” Also recovered is the watercraft utilized with markings “Irsan” with 13 Horsepower Single Engine onboard.
There are no casualties on the government side.
The PN will continue conducting intensified maritime patrols together with other maritime agencies in order to address the illegal activities victimizing our fishermen and commercial vessels. NPAO / MCAG
From The Standard (Dec 1): DND: All-out war vs Maute
Defense chief prods Duterte to ‘finish’ them
DEFENSE Secretary Delfin Lorenzana on Wednesday urged President Rodrigo Duterte to wage an all-out offensive against the terrorist Maute group, after the Chief Executive hinted that he was open to talking peace with them.
“I will push for sustained and all-out operations against the Maute. They have been committing crimes with impunity,” Lorenzana told Manila Standard. “We need to finish them.”
Lorenzana warned that the Maute group’s connection to the Islamic State was an imminent threat to the already fragile security situation in the country.
He said if the international coalition made headway in its military offensive in Iraq, the Islamic State could transfer to the Philippines.
Various militant groups in Mindanao, including the Maute group and the Abu Sayyaf, were reportedly courting the jihadist group for recognition as a ‘wilayat’ (province) in Southeast Asia.
Lorenzana said that their recent acts suggests that they have already established connections with the global terrorist organization, contrary to their earlier position last August that they weren’t much of a threat.
“They’ve always said they support IS, and they fly their flag. With those indications, you can come to the conclusion that maybe that connection is already there,” Lorenzana said in Filipino.
On Wednesday, Duterte warned the Maute group, saying that they should not force him to declare war against them.
“Do not force me because I might be provoked to do something drastic,” Duterte said in his speech before troops at the Tactical Command Post in Lumbayanague, Lanao del Sur, some five kilometers away from the war zone in Butig town.
SIGNATURE GESTURE. President Rodrigo Duterte and military men do his signature clenched fist during his visit to Lumbayanague town, Lanao del Sur on Nov. 30, 2016. Toto Lozano
“When the time comes that it’s going to be a war against terrorism and drugs, I will tell you now that I can be harsh... as harsh I can ever be,” he added.
In an interview with reporters at Camp Evangelista Station Hospital in Cagayan de Oro City, Duterte said the Maute group should stop waging war on the government.
“For the Maute, I said I do not want to declare war against Filipinos, but I told them that they have to stop. I hope we will not reach that point that we have to go to war. So I am doing everything to prevent war,” Duterte said.
“I don’t want to go to war, but do not force my hand into it,” he added.
Duterte said that he hoped to have a “middle ground” with the Maute group, whom he cited in previous speeches were provoked by “Moro nationalism.”
“It’s very easy to start a war. But how to stop it and to heal the wounds, it would be hard. I wish we could have a middle ground,” Duterte said.
The President said he tried sending feelers to the Maute group but to no avail.
“I have long opened [communication lines with them]. This problem cannot be resolved through sheer courage alone. But there is always a time when I have to protect everybody,” Duterte said.
Despite threats to his security, the President pushed through with his visit to Lanao del Sur Wednesday, when he landed at the Tactical Command Post in Lumbayanague, a mere five kilometers from the war zone in Butig.
Nine soldiers, including members of his security group were injured Tuesday with two in critical condition on Tuesday after an improvised bomb exploded near a presidential convoy in Marawi City.
On Tuesday, Duterte suggested he could “befriend” the Maute group to avoid conflict.
He also urged them to abandon their “losing cause” and talk with the government.
“How could you be a Maranao? You’re a Tausug… and you take orders form outside just to fight for what? Won’t this end?” he said.
It has long been against official policy to negotiate with terrorist groups. The Maute group was behind the Davao City night market bomb attack that killed 15 people in September.
On November 24, the group occupied the abandoned town hall of Butig in Lanao del Sur and reportedly raised the black flag of IS. The Army has sent elite troops to flush out the group.
From Malaya Business Insight (Dec 1): Officers want longer tenure for AFP chief
A GROUP of junior officers wants President Duterte to do away with the “revolving door” policy in the designation of the AFP chief.
The officers said the successor of AFP chief Gen, Ricardo Visaya should have at least three remaining years in service so that he would have time to pursue long-term programs and reforms in the 125,000-strong military force.
“Change has come and since change has indeed come, now is the right time the way the President chooses the chief of staff. No more revolving door policy,” the group said in a manifesto, referring to Duterte’s battle cry.
Visaya had only five months in the service left when he was appointed by Duterte as AFP chief on July 1. Visaya, a member of the Philippine Military Academy Class of 1983, is due to reach the mandatory retirement age of 56 on December 8 but will relinquish his post a day earlier.
Malacañang has not announced who Duterte’s second AFP chief will be.
Rumored to be among the top contenders are three-star generals -- Army chief Lt. Gen. Eduardo Año, Eastern Mindanao Command chief Lt. Gen. Rey Leonardo Guerrero, and AFP vice chief Lt. Gen. Glorioso Miranda. All three are retiring late next year.
Año and Miranda belong to PMA Class 83 and Guerrero, Class 84.
Two-star generals are also among rumored contenders. They would be under Class 85 and up.
The officers said an AFP chief will need at least three years in the office so he can pursue long-term goals. He said AFP chiefs serving for several months aspire only for short-term programs.
They said there is need to have an AFP chief who will serve for a few years because of the peace process, referring to the ongoing peace talks with the communist-led National Democratic Front.
From Malaya Business Insight (Dec 1): AFP, police tag Maute in Marawi explosion
THE military and the police yesterday pointed to the Maute group as behind the explosion last Tuesday in Marawi City, which hit a convoy carrying President Duterte’s advance party.
They also said the attack was meant to divert the military’s focus from operations against the group in Butig town in Lanao del Norte.
However, they differed on what hit the convoy which was carrying members of the Presidential Security Group.
The military said it was an improvised explosive bomb (IED) left on the roadside but the police said it was rifle grenade fired by Maute group members apparently on ambush position at a highway.
The explosion wounded seven PSG personnel and two soldiers from the 65th Infantry Division, who were in the convoy along with members of Radio Television Malacañang and local troop escorts preparing for Duterte’s visit Wednesday.
Maute members are being pursued by the military in Lanao del Sur after around 70 of them occupied the old and abandoned municipal hall in Barangay Bayabao, Butig town last Saturday.
Yesterday, government forces gained control of the building. At least 61 Maute criminals have been killed in the five-day military operation to dislodge them from the building. Operations are ongoing to clear the area of unexploded bombs.
Senior Supt. Agustin Tello, chief of the Lanao del Sur Police Provincial Office, said three to five members of the Maute group hid among the houses along the highway and fired a grenade launcher as soon as the military convoy passed.
He said the rifle grenade, which was “shoulder-fired,” hit the side of one of the Army trucks.
He said thereis “no evidence” to support the presence of an IED.
“It was fired, parang shoulder fired, kaya na strike yung gilid ng sasakyan. Isang explosion lang ang nangyari. Yan ang theory namin kasi sa side tumama, hindi sa ilalim,” Tello said.
“Parang hit and run, baka yun ginawa nila. Mga three or five lang sila. May mga bahay doon so hindi basta maka-exchange of fire, kasi baka may tamaan na civilians,” he also said.
But he said there is no evidence the Maute knew there were PSG men in the trucks. He said the Maute members would hit any military truck they see.
TRADEMARK
Col. Generoso Ponio, deputy commander of the 103rd Brigade based in Lanao del Sur, said the IED was fashioned from a 60-mm mortar -- a trademark of the Maute group.
“There is no other group,” said Ponio citing findings of Explosive and Ordnance Disposal personnel on the bomb.
He said the IED was similar to the bomb used by the Maute in the September 2 Davao City bombing that left 15 people dead and scores injured.
The bomb in the Davao City bombing was made from 60-mm and 81-mm mortars. Eight Maute group members are already in the custody of authorities for the bombing. Some of them have confessed participation in the attack.
When told of reports that a rifle grenade was used in the Marawi City bombing, Ponio maintained that what was detonated was an IED.
Ponio said the Maute group detonated the IED to divert military focus from the operations in Butig and to “inflict casualties” on soldiers.
Lt. Col. Benedicto Manquiquis, spokesman of the Army’s 1st Infantry Division, said: “The Maute Group is our suspect. The bomb used (in the Marawi roadside bombing) was similar to the one they used in the Davao City bombing.”
“This is a diversionary tactic because of the focused military operations against them in Butig,” he also said.
The military has said troops were on a convoy of military trucks when the IED went off a road in Barangay Matampay at around 10:45 a.m., hitting the lead vehicle.
CONTROL REGAINED
Col. Edgard Arevalo, chief of the AFP public affairs office, said forces of the Army’s 103rd Brigade retook the old municipal building around 9:20 a.m.
Military officials said the Maute group took control of the building in response to military operations days earlier. Government troops moved to dislodge the group from the building and the fighting spread to other barangays in Butig.
“We have successfully retaken the (old) municipal building... If we are going to talk about the entire, 100 percent completion of the task of fully retaking and recovering that portion of Butig that they occupied, we are 80 percent complete,”said Arevalo, quoting from a report of Col. Roseller Murillo, commander of the 103rd Brigade.
Asked if they recovered any enemy body at the site, Arevalo said: “None yet. That will be part of the clearing operation that we are saying. We have to scour the area, we have to clear the area.”
The Maute Group, which has links with the Abu Sayyaf and the Southeast Asian regional terrorist network Jemaah Islamiah, has pledged allegiance t to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. It has around 200 to 300 men, according to the military.
From Rappler (Dec 1): Ambush in Marawi City? Residents have doubts
The military laments all the talk about a staged ambush that wounded 9 soldiers, including President Duterte's security. 'It is difficult to sacrifice the lives of soldiers for a scenario like that,' says a colonel.
DOUBTS. Marawi City residents flock to the ambush site a day after the incident. Rappler photo
A day after the Marawi City ambush that wounded 9 soldiers, most of them security officers of President Rodrigo Duterte, residents and motorists gathered at the site to share their stories and version of what happened – or did not happen.
Some of the residents do not believe military and government reports that an improvised explosive device (IED) was detonated along the main highway of Barangay Emie Punud, leading to a firefight between soldiers and alleged rebels on Tuesday, November 29.
Abitaleb Campong, 38, said he was inside his house nearby when he heard Tuesday morning a loud bang which was followed by a spray of bullets. "Parang 79 [caliber] pumutok. Mga baril pumutok. Ang mga sundalo nagpaputok," Campong said. (It sounded like a caliber 79. And then gunshots were heared. The soldiers fired the shots.)
"First time 'yan.... Parang gawa-gawa ng mga sundalo. Sila ang pumutok e (That is the first time [an ambush happened here]. I think the soldiers made it up. They were the ones who fired)," Campong added. The reported IED blast happened in a residential area.
The military said this sentiment was "painful" to hear, a form of "propaganda" amid intensified government operations against the Maute terrorist group in the area.
President Rodrigo Duterte himself on Wednesday visited the soldiers who were confined in a hospital in Cagayan de Oro City.
Emil Disamburun, 45, shared Campong's doubts, although he lives farther down the city. "Kung may ambush, 'yung sa taas may [sundalo] na. Wala. Walang taong nakita dito," he said. (If there was an ambush, there would have been soldiers up there. We didn't see people there.)
The blast site is located at the bottom of a hilly side of the highway.
Marawi City has its share of ambush incidents, but they don't happen in barangay Emie Punud, according to Disamburun. "Panahon pa niMarcos anglastnaambush dito," he said. (The last ambush incident in this area happened during the time of Marcos.)
SITE. The reported ambush happened along the main highway in Barangay Emie Punud
The sentiments echoed what was posted on Facebook Tuesday night by Drieza Abato Lininding that has since been shared more than 3,000 times as of this story's posting.
Accidental firing?
Lininding, a known Duterte supporter who describes himself as an "activist," said his team visited the houses near the ambush site to verify the incident.
Based on his interviews, residents believe that one of the soldiers in the convoy may have accidentally fired his M203 service firearm, causing confusion that might have prompted other soldiers to open fire.
In an interview with Rappler, Lininding said the military here would stage bombings and then blame them on Muslim rebels. "Our fear is that this is part of a larger scenario to declare martial law in Lanao area," he said.
Military officers, however, dismissed this talk as part of efforts to discredit soldiers who are in the middle of an all-out offensive against local terrorists and kidnappers.
AWARD. President Rodrigo Duterte visits the members of the Presidential Security Group injured in an ambush in Marawi City a day before his visit to Lanao del Sur. Contributed photo
Military reports showed that the incident happened before 11 am on Tuesday.
A convoy of the Presidential Security Group and Radio TV Malacañang (RTVM), along with local troop escorts, were on their way to Marawi when an IED exploded along their path, the military said.
The government troops were then fired upon by "armed suspects," the military said.
The 7 members of the PSG who were wounded were identified by the police as the following: Captain Zamora, Staff Sergeant Damaso, Corporal Inova, Corporal De Leon, Seargeant Garcia, Private First Class Gonzalez and Private First Class Panisa. Two other Army soldiers were also hurt.
A staff of the government RTVM channel, who was part of the convoy, attested to the ambush. He said they were forced to go the other way when they heard the blast. The military said the soldiers were immediately brought to the 103rd brigade headquarters then airlifted to a Cagayan de Oro hospital to be treated.
Colonel Rosseler Murillo, brigade commander, lamented how the residents were doubting the incident. "Alam natin na totoo ang ginagawa natin kasi ang hirap isakripisyo ang buhay ng sundalo para sa ganoong scenario lang," Murillo said. (We know that it is true. It is difficult to sacrifice the lives of soldiers for a scenario like that.)
One of the soldiers was seriously injured.
"They are very active sa mga ganoon kasi (in propaganda because) they are losing this battle," said Murillo, citing what he said is the close relationship among families in the area.
"Wala namang ibang fact e (There is no other fact). It was an ambush deliberately planned kung sino ang dadaan doon na (for whoever was passing there that was a) marked vehicle of the military," said Murillo.
The military launched an offensive against the Maute group that pledged allegiance to the foreign terrorist group Islamic State (ISIS) that has sought to establish a caliphate in the Middle East.
In Butig town, a few hours' drive away from Marawi City, the Maute group occupied the abandoned town hall and raised the black flag of the ISIS.
On Wednesday, the same day that Duterte visited the army camp in Lanao del Sur, the military said it had driven the group out of the town hall.
From Rappler (Dec 1): WATCH: Duterte in Butig town, Lanao for Command Conference
Watch President Duterte's speech November 30 in Butig town in Lanao del Sur.
President Rodrigo Duterte. Photo from Malacanang PPD
President Rodrigo Duterte visits Butig town in Lanao to meet with military officials there. The military has been in a running battle with the local terror group Maute since the weekend and has reportedly flushed them out of the area. The Watch!
From InterAksyon (Dec 1): RED BOOK MEETS FACEBOOK | Revolution bridges generations in Melito Glor Command
Jaime 'Ka Diego' Padilla, spokesman of the NPA's Melito Glor Command, and Ka Katryn. (photo by Bernard Testa, InterAksyon.com)
In a New People’s Army camp in the Sierra Madre, invited journalists saw young guerrillas armed with MacBook Pros, one of them managing the Facebook account of RED BOOK MEETS FACEBOOK | Revolution bridges generations in Melito Glor Command, new spokesman of the Melito Glor Command.
If Padilla, 69, is the familiar face of the revolution, young cadres like the social media savvy college graduate Ka Katryn, 24, are the new.
“Ang old dog mahirap turuan ng bagong tricks (It is hard to teach an old dog new tricks),” Ka Diego said, admitting it would be difficult to navigate the world of social media without his young comrades.
Two generations decades apart bound together in the almost half-century armed struggle in the countryside, the old, the link to history, the young giving new blood to the movement.
Almost 50 years since the longest armed struggle in Asia was launched, the faces -- and technologies -- of the revolution may have changed, but the causes that drive their struggle, such as genuine land reform, nationalist industrialization, social equity, said Ka Diego, have not.
From the Philippine Information Agency (Dec 1): GRP, NDF unveil ‘peace talks’ agenda
TUGUEGARAO CITY, Cagayan - - Officials of the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and the National Democratic Front (NDF) recently revealed the substantive agenda of the on-going peace negotiations in a symposium hosted by the Archdiocese here.
Benito Tiamzon, member of the NDF panel, said the peace negotiation is anchored on four major agenda to include human rights and international humanitarian law, socio-economic reforms, political and constitutional reforms, and end of hostilities and disposition of forces.
Wilma Tiamzon, another member of the NDF panel, said there were several peace negotiation attempts since 1986, however, none were successful.
The two members expressed their optimism that the Duterte administration will be sincere enough to come up into a fair and serious negotiation that will benefit both parties that result in the attainment of lasting peace and development in the country.
“We are passionate in dealing with the government negotiators as we want peace in the country. We are pushing for several development programs that the government should adhere and implement in order for us to end violence and eradicate poverty and injustices which are the root causes of armed conflict and insurgencies all over the country,” Wilma Tiamzon said.
Included in the development program that the NDF wants to pursue with the government are land reform, cooperativism, agricultural modernization, and national industrialization.
On the government side, Labor secretary Silvestre Bello III said the GRP panel members push the peace talks process forward to attain its objective with sincerity from both parties.
Bello said one of the four major agenda laid by the NDF, the human rights and international humanitarian law concern, was already done while the three remaining agenda are on table discussion.
Bello, however, said that nothing will go wrong should the peace negotiations fail as long as both parties will believe and trust each other and be sincere in adhering to the agreements shared and signed by each other.
The first peace talks in the present administration has just concluded in Oslo, Norway while the next level of negotiation will in January next year will be conducted in Rome, Italy.
Bello said the next panel of negotiation will not only cover the other peace agenda items but also the implementation of a bilateral ceasefire from both sides.
“We need to have the bilateral ceasefire to lower the level of violence while the GRP and the CPP-NPA-NDF are having peace negotiations,” Bello added.
The symposium on peace talk was participated in by students from different tertiary schools, farmers from various towns, government employees, non-government organizations, youth representatives, church workers from the Roman Catholic, Aglipayan and non-sectarian religious organizations.
From the Philippine Information Agency (Dec 1): US Ambassador-designate arrives in Manila December 1
U.S. Ambassador-Designate to the Philippines, Sung Kim, will arrive in Manila Thursday evening, December 1. Upon arrival, Ambassador Kim will give a statement to the press at the NAIA Terminal 1 Dignitaries Lounge. There will be no Q&A session.
On November 3, 2016, Ambassador-Designate Sung Kim was sworn in as the U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of the Philippines. He was nominated by President Barack Obama on May 19, 2016 and confirmed by the United States Senate on September 28, 2016.
Previously, Ambassador Kim served as Special Representative for North Korea Policy and Deputy Assistant Secretary for Korea and Japan.
From November 2011 until October 2014, he was the U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Korea.
Ambassador Kim has also served as the Special Envoy for the Six-Party Talks with the rank of Ambassador. He has served in a variety of positions in the East Asia Pacific region, including overseas assignments in Seoul, Tokyo, Kuala Lumpur and Hong Kong. Ambassador Kim’s Washington assignments have included director of the Office of Korean Affairs, desk officer in the Office of Chinese Affairs, and Staff Assistant in the Bureau of East Asia and Pacific Affairs. Prior to joining the Foreign Service, he worked as a public prosecutor in the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
Ambassador Kim was born in Seoul, Korea, and grew up in Los Angeles where he attended middle school and high school. He earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania and completed a degree in law from Loyola University. He also holds a Master of Laws degree from the London School of Economics and an honorary doctorate from the Catholic University of Korea.
Ambassador Kim is married to Jae Eun Chung, and they have two daughters. (US Embassy Manila)
From the Philippine Information Agency (Dec 1): President Duterte asks support for Mindanao peace & development
President Rodrigo Duterte appealed to the Muslim people to help his administration achieve peace in Mindanao that in the end would bring economic prosperity in the region.
Addressing the troops in Butig, Lanao del Sur on Wednesday, Nov. 30, the President said he does not want to wage war with fellow Filipinos and this is the reason why the government has embarked on peace initiatives on different fronts.
But with the renewed violence in Mindanao, particularly in Lanao provinces as a result of Maute Group's terrorist activities, the President said he may lose his patience and make harsh response.
He said he does not want to fan more violence to fight terrorism and illegal drugs pleading the Moro people to support his government attain peace and stability.
"Hindi ako nanakot ng tao. I am pleading to my Moro brothers and sisters: please help us. We will build a nation," the President said.
Duterte announced that he will open the barter trade in Zamboanga City soon.
"If you want I will restore the barter trade. I will open Zamboanga again. Walang problema iyan," he said.
The Chief Executive vowed to introduce reforms in Mindanao once a peace deal is achieved to improve the living conditions of the people. He also said he will prioritize the region in giving assistance once foreign development aid comes.
President Duterte particularly pleaded to all the Moro political leaders, men of influence, and scholars to continue participating in the ongoing peace efforts to find solutions to the region's problems.
He said he is open for the adoption of Sharia Law in some areas where it will be suitable as long as it is fair for both the Muslims and the Christians.
Reiterating his thrust to adopt a federal form of government, he said his government will begin the structure for federalism next year setting aside however provisions of the Constitutions that are not acceptable.
With regard to the military offensive against the Maute Group, the President said in an interview in Cagayan de Oro City that the military operations will continue the offensive against the terrorist organization.
"They (military) have to go on with the operations. What is there to stop? Wala naman nagpapakita ng sincerity diyan so the fight goes on," he said.
The President visited the members of the Presidential Security Group confined at Camp Evangelista Station Hospital in Cagayan de Oro City who were hurt by the explosion of an improvised explosive device in Marawi City on Tuesday, Nov. 29.
From InterAksyon (Nov 30): 2 'persons of interest' in IED planting near US embassy now in custody
Computer-generated police sketch of the man seen leaving a package near the US embassy in Manila.
(UPDATE2 - 4:33 pm.) Police now have in custody two "persons of interest" in connection with the planting of an improvised explosive device near the US embassy in Manila on Monday, the chief of the National Capital Region Police Office confirmed Wednesday.
The first man was arrested Tuesday night in Bulakan, Bulacan on Wednesday and the second, a man from Caloocan City, was taken in for questioning on Wednesday, said Chief Supt. Oscar Albayalde.
Both men were tracked through a combination of intelligence work and with the help of a computer-generated composite sketch of the man seen by witnesses as having left a package inside a trash can near the embassy, hours before it was found by a street cleaner.
The IED, described as bearing a similar "signature" as that used in the Sept. 2 Davao market bombing that killed 15 people, was taken by the Manila Police District and safely detonated. They said if it had gone off, it could have hurt people within a 100-meter radius.
Reports reaching the National Operation Center in Camp Crame earlier said Rayson Kilala Sakdal, alias Rashid Kilala, was arrested by a joint team from the Manila Police District and Bulacan provincial police a day after the suspect's sketch was released. He is said to have hailed from Marawi City.
Philippine National Police chief Ronald dela Rosa earlier the sketch was that of the driver of the taxi in which the bomb was transported.
"Siya mismo ang driver. Siya ang may dala (ng IED). Hindi natin alam kung terorista siya na nag-rent ng taxi o taxi driver siya na nilapitan ng terorista na paki-deliver ito doon, pakilagay mo sa trash bin (He was the driver. He brought the IED. We don't know if he is a terrorist who rented a taxi or a taxi driver who was approched by terrorists to delivery the bomb and place it in the trash bin)," Dela Rosa said in a press conference on Tuesday after the sketch was released.
Dela Rosa said if he was the taxi driver was not aware that what he was ferrying was a bomb, he would have agreed to the request especially if offered a hefty fee.
The bomb, crafted from an 81-mm mortar shell and set to be triggered through a mobile phone, was placed in the trash bin just around 100 meters from the embassy and was discovered by a street sweeper.
It was safely detonated by the MPD bomb squad.
Authorities said it was similar to that used in the bomb attack in Davao City that killed 15 persons and wounded scores more on September 2. That attack has been blamed on the Maute Group, against which the military has launched an offensive in Butig, Lanao del Sur.
On Tuesday, seven troops of the Presidential Security Group and two soldiers from another unit were wounded when a convoy bearing President Rodrigo Duterte's advance party was struck by roadside bombs in Marawi City.
Despite the incident, Duterte is visiting Lanao del Sur Wednesday.
From MindaNews (Nov 30): Duterte offers peace to Maute group, Commander Bravo
President Rodrigo Duterte arrives in Butig. MindaNews photo by Froilan Gallardo
Flanked by his generals, President Rodrigo Duterte offered the Maute terror group as well as the maverick leader of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front in this province the olive branch of peace.
Duterte said talking peace is better than waging war that would affect the Moro people, his strong supporters in the past elections, and the rest of the country.
“It is easy to start a war but it would be harder to end the fighting,”Duterte told soldiers gathered at the Tactical Command Post of the Army’s 103rd Infantry Brigade here.
Close supporters of Duterte told MindaNews that they are looking for avenues of communication to the Maute group and MILF commander Abduhrahman Macapaar alias Commander Bravo.
President Duterte said he tried to communicate with the Maute group but realized the rebels were determined to establish a caliphate in Mindanao in pursuance with goals of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
He said the group has terrorized the residents of Butig by engaging in carjacking, kidnapping and harvesting their agricultural products.
As for Bravo, Duterte said he received information that the MILF commander is also engaged in kidnappings and providing protection to drug syndicates.
“I have been trying to talk to him since the beginning but he has become intransigence. It appears he is losing hope in the government,” Duterte said.
He ignored threats and the critical situation in Butig to come here and visit the troops fighting the Maute group for the past two weeks.
Last Monday, seven personnel of the Presidential Security Group and two other soldiers from another Army unit were wounded when roadside bombs hit their military convoy in Barangay Matampay, Marawi City.
Duterte said this kind of violence should end but he warned the Maute group and Bravo that there is a timetable for his gesture of peace.
“I can be harsh. Right now the fight will be against drugs and terrorism,” he said.
Col. Roseller Murillo, commander of the 103rd Infantry Brigade, said President Duterte left it to the field commanders the decision to continue the operation against the Maute group.
Murillo said they have retaken two-thirds of the town of Butig where previously the Maute group roamed at will.
He said the fighting is now beside the mountains near the MILF’s Camp Palestine in Butig.
The MILF, following the ceasefire protocol, have withdrawn its fighters from Camp Palestine to avoid a misencounter with government troops.
The two-week old fighting has forced the evacuation of 2,450 families or 12,500 persons from eight barangays in Butig.
Butig Mayor Dimnatang Pansar said many of the evacuees are living with their relatives in Marawi City and adjoining towns.
Flanked by his generals in Butig, Lanao del Sur, President Rodrigo Duterte offers the Maute group and MILF commander Abduhraman Macapaar alias Commander Bravo the olive branch of peace in Butig town, Lanao del Sur on Tuesday (30 Nov2016). Duterte however said the gesture of peace is not finite and urged the rebels to talk peace or else he will respond harshly. MindaNews photo by Froilan Gallardo
From the Mindanao Examiner (Nov 30): Duterte visits wounded troops in Marawi City despite attack on presidential guards
President Duterte on Wednesday visited wounded troops in Marawi City in Lanao del Sur province where security forces were battling hundreds of jihadists whose group is tied to the Islamic State.
His visit came a day after jihadists detonated a roadside bomb and attacked a convoy of presidential guards was passing the area and wounded at least 7 of them. The guards were part of Duterte’s advance security team and heading to the army’s 103rd Infantry Brigade when jihadists attacked them.
Duterte met closed door with top security officials inside the tightly guarded 103rd Infantry Brigade headquarters and was briefed by the military on the on-going operations against the group of jihadist leader Abdullah Maute that occupied Butig town and hoisted ISIS flags there.
He also spoke with troops and encouraged them “to persevere and do their work with the guarantee of his all-out support.”
Duterte told soldiers that his priority is the welfare of all the people and the entire nation and “very much wants peace to reign all over the land, but not at the expense of peace loving citizens.” Following the visit, the president went to Cagayan de Oro and also visited and pinned medals to wounded soldiers
Military propagandists claimed that 61 jihadists had been killed and about a dozen more wounded since the battle began this week in Butig town. At least 35 government soldiers were confirmed injured in the clashes. Duterte earlier said he wanted to talk peace with the Maute group and the Abu Sayyaf rebels in an effort to put a stop to ransom kidnappings, terrorism and deadly clashes in the troubled region.
“Pati Abu Sayyaf, I’m ready to talk to them. I’m ready to open the borders. I’m ready to talk about opening the borders down south, no problem – Kasi may trade pa noon, wala masyadong gulo noon. We cannot be forever treating human beings here, seriously wounded. Let us talk. Let us give our people a chance.”
“I can bomb more if I want to. At the end of the day, what can I say to the Filipino? That we have wiped out almost all of our Yakan, Sama, Tausug brothers? Even those not connected with the violence now? Either we talk, if you want autonomy or if you want something else, federalism, I am ready. I am committed to federalism set-up to appease the Moro,” he said.
But there were no indications that the Maute and Abu Sayyaf groups are interested in peace talks with Duterte.
On Wednesday, security officials said government troops clashed with Abu Sayyaf rebels and killing one of them on Capual Island off the southern Sulu town of Omar in the restive Muslim autonomous region.
Soldiers recovered the body of the slain rebel, including three motorboats, an automatic rifle and an improvised explosive following the Tuesday fighting between members of the 11th Scout Rangers and the notorious group tied to the Islamic State.
There were no reports of casualties from the military side.
