Daesh in Philippines: Dozens of Victims As Besieged Terrorists Execute ‘Betrayers’

Local Editor

At least 27 civilians have been killed, in addition to 61 terrorists in the Philippine city of Marawi.

Meanwhile, some 2,000 people remain trapped as Daesh-linked Maute militants mercilessly kill "betrayers" who try to flee the city, reports said.

Killings in Marawi started when Maute fighters, aligned with Daesh [the Arabic acronym for the Takfiri terrorist ‘ISIS/ISIL' group], raided the city last Tuesday.

This figure includes the latest victims - eight males, whose bodies were discovered with gunshot wounds to their heads on a roadside in the outskirts of Marawi on Sunday. According to locals, the victims were civilians who worked at a rice mill and a medical college and had attempted to flee the city.

A signed note attached to one of the men indicated that the victims had "betrayed their faith," police officer Jamail Mangadang told the Philippine Star.

In another discovery, the bodies of four men, three women and a child were found on Saturday near a university in the city.

"These are civilians, women. These terrorists are anti-people. We found their bodies while conducting rescue operations," regional military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Jo-ar Herrera said, according to Manila Standard.

In addition to the civilian casualties, Military spokesman Brig. Gen. Restituto Padilla said a total of 11 soldiers and four police officers have been killed since the fierce fighting erupted last Tuesday.

The military says it has killed at least 61 Maute fighters, bringing the total death toll to over 100 people.

The militants seemed significantly weakened by the ongoing military operation and are showing less resistance, but still pose grave danger to locals, Padilla said.

"We believe they're now low on ammunition and food," he said. "Compared to the initial days, there has been increasingly less resistance from the militants within Marawi."

In tandem to the military onslaught, the army was also carrying out rescues operations, freeing civilians trapped in terrorist-held areas and bringing them to safety.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team