United States special forces are providing support to the Philippine military battling to dislodge Islamist militants in a southern city, the US embassy said Saturday, as 13 Filipino marines were killed in fresh fighting. Friday’s ferocious, street-to-street gunbattles with the militants saw 13 troops killed in a dramatic surge in the toll from the conflict. Philippine military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Jo-ar Herrera confirmed the US help, adding that the special forces were not fighting, but “providing technical support”. He said Friday’s deaths brought the number of government troops killed in the conflict to 58. Herrera said the militants’ tactics was making it harder for security forces to carry out attacks without causing civilian casualties and hurting religious sensitivities.

Source: Egypt Independent June 10, 2017 11:48 UTC