NEARING END Soldiers on the front line in the war against Islamic State-inspired terrorists in Marawi City are happy about reports from their superiors that the crisis is ending soon. —JEOFFREY MAITEM
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana initially set June 2 as the “target date” to free Marawi City after it was taken over by Islamic State-inspired terrorists on May 23.
Gen. Eduardo Año, AFP chief of staff, during a visit to Marawi, said the city could be liberated by Independence Day on June 12.
In July, Lorenzana said he hoped the conflict would end before President Rodrigo Duterte’s State of the Nation Address on July 24.
On Sept. 27, Lorenzana, giving an update to the House committee on Muslim affairs, said government troops might be able to retake the city in three days.
Unaware of the Oct. 1 deadline set by Lorenzana, troops continued to recapture more areas and kill more enemy fighters, said Col. Romeo Brawner, the deputy commander of Joint Task Force Ranao.
Lorenzana’s latest estimate of the battle’s end, which he claimed was relayed by troop commanders on the ground, did not match that of the military and sparked confusion among the thousands of evacuees who were looking forward to going home.
On the same day the defense chief met the House committee on Muslim affairs, Brawner said it might take the military “10 to 15 more days” to finish off the enemy.
“The military remains confident to end the Marawi crisis by Oct. 15, which will be followed by a second clearing operation before the rehabilitation starts,” Brawner said