PLACE OF WORSHIP The Marawi City government opens the rebuilt Bato Ali Mosque at the city center, considered to be the ground zero of the battle between Islamic State-linked militants and government troops tasked to retake the city during the five-month siege in 2017. —RICHEL V. UMEL
House Minority Leader Marcelino Libanan on Thursday said the compensation fund for victims of the 2017 Marawi City siege would receive an additional P1 billion to cover claims. Marawi Compensation Board (MCB) chair Maisara Latiph on Monday informed an ad hoc panel of the lower chamber that the initial P1-billion compensation fund was almost depleted as the board processed some P800-million worth of claims on July 4 alone. Libanan said MCB would receive separate funding of P117 million in 2024 to facilitate the processing and verification of claims. —JEANNETTE I. ANDRADE