In 2013, Omarkhayam decamped to a family property outside Marawi, Madrais said. In late May, Philippine troops stormed a compound in Marawi, expecting to make arrests. After a prolonged gun battle, the Philippine army slowly pushed the militants toward the city’s center, where they dug in. “It was heavy urban fighting,” said Col. Romeo Brawner, a U.S.-trained soldier who is now the deputy commander of a Marawi task force. “I prayed, then cry, cry, cry, cry, and then I vomited,” she said.

Source: Washington Post December 09, 2017 21:33 UTC