Timeline: Long road for Philippine-Muslim rebel group deal

Muslim rebels in the southern Philippines have been fighting since the 1970s for independence or autonomy, with the conflict claiming about 150,000 lives.

The main rebel group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), and the government announced on Sunday they had agreed a road map for peace. Here are the key dates in the conflict:

1972: President Ferdinand Marcos declares martial law across the country to contain what he says are growing Muslim and communist insurgencies.

Muslim rebels in the southern region of Mindanao quickly create a formal organisation, the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), led by a young scholar named Nur Misuari.

1974: As the MNLF gains strength, Marcos unleashes the military against the rebels. It is the start of intense fighting across parts of Mindanao that lasts for over a decade, a period when most of the 150,000 lives are lost.

1975: The government holds its first meeting with Misuari in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. He agrees to explore autonomy as a basis for talks.