Militants may have slipped out of Marawi
Some Islamist militants battling government troops for a fourth week in a besieged southern Philippine city may have already slipped out and attempt to sow terror in nearby areas, the Philippine military says.
Troops have already arrested several suspected militants and sympathisers outside of Marawi City, 800 kilometres south of Manila, where the death toll in 25 days of fighting has reached 310, the military says.
But Brigadier General Restituto Padilla admitted that some of the gunmen might have been able to evade security checks entering the nearby cities of Iligan and Cagayan de Oro by pretending to be displaced residents.
"We cannot deny that some of them might have been able to slip out with the evacuees going to nearby areas such as Iligan and Cagayan de Oro," he said. "That's why we have stepped up cooperation with local government and security partners."
He spoke of "heightened security measures" in Iligan and Cagayan de Oro to check and to watch closely any possible movements of suspicious persons so that communities remain safe, he added.
The conflict in Marawi City began on May 23 when hundreds of militants went on rampage after government forces attempted to arrest a local leader of the Islamic State terrorist movement.
Australian journalist Adam Harvey was shot in the neck on Thursday while covering events in Marawi and is recovering from surgery.
Originally published as Militants may have slipped out of Marawi
