FOREIGN Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano admitted that the crisis in Marawi City caused by the Islamic State (IS)-linked Maute group has become a bigger challenge for the Duterte administration but it also showed that the government was not “anti-Muslim but anti-terrorism”. He added that continuous communication between the government and other rebel groups in Mindanao helped in preventing the Marawi crisis from escalating into a bigger war. More than 200 people, including civilians and soldiers have been killed since the Maute group, led by Isnilon Hapilon, attacked Marawi City last May 23. “The challenge has become bigger because of Marawi. Cayetano said that crisis in Marawi has shown that the government was engaged in a war against terrorists and not with Muslims.

Source: Manila Times July 09, 2017 08:37 UTC