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The Philippine flag is held by a soldier after government troops cleared Marawi of militants. Photo: Reuters

Battle over: Philippines declares end of Marawi siege after dozens of militants die in final showdown

Troops prevailed in confrontation with gunmen who clung on to the end inside several buildings in the heart of southern town

The Philippines on Monday announced the end of five months of military operations in a southern city held by pro-Islamic State rebels, after a fierce and unfamiliar urban war that has marked the country’s biggest security crisis in years.

Offensive combat operations were terminated after troops put a stop to the last stand of rebel gunmen who clung on inside several buildings in the heart of Marawi, and refused to surrender.

Flames rise from damaged buildings inside a war-torn area of Marawi city, southern Philippines. Photo: Reuters

Artillery and automatic gunfire were still heard on Monday and Reuters journalists saw flames behind a mosque. The bodies of 40 fighters and two of their wives were found there and in two buildings close by.

Ernesto Abella, spokesman for President Rodrigo Duterte, said the army had prevailed against “the most serious threat of violent extremism and radicalism in the Philippines and in Southeast Asia”.

Soldiers walking past battle-scarred buildings in what was the main combat area of Marawi. Photo: AFP

Defence Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said security forces had “nipped the budding infrastructure” of extremist groups.

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“In crushing thus far the most serious attempt to export violent extremism and radicalism in the Philippines and in the region, we have contributed to preventing its spread in Asia,” Lorenzana said in Clark at a meeting of regional defence ministers.

Philippine Defence Secretary Delfin Lorenzana (left) and armed forces chief Eduardo Ano at a meeting of Southeast Asian defence ministers in Clark, north of Manila, on October 23, 2017. Photo: Kyodo

The rebel occupation stunned a military inexperienced in urban combat and stoked wider concerns that Islamic State loyalists have gained influence among local Muslims and have ambitions to use the island of Mindanao as a base for operations in Southeast Asia.

Those fears are compounded by the organisation of the militant alliance and its ability to recruit young fighters, lure foreign radicals, stockpile huge amounts of arms and endure 154 days of ground offensives and air strikes.

Soldiers standing beside a battle-scarred building in what was the main combat area of Marawi on October 23, 2017. Photo: AFP

The authorities said 920 militants, 165 troops and police and at least 45 civilians were killed in the conflict, which forced more than 300,000 people to flee the city.

The centre of the picturesque lakeside town is now in ruins because of heavy shelling and aerial bombing.

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The deputy task force commander in Marawi, Colonel Romeo Brawner, said troops would secure the city from militant “stragglers” who might still be alive.

Soldiers walking past battle-scarred buildings, including a mosque, in what was the main combat area of Marawi. Photo: AFP

“If we find them and they will attack our soldiers or even the civilians, then we will have to defend ourselves,” he told reporters.

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After months of slow progress, the military has made significant gains in retaking Marawi in the week since Isnilon Hapilon, Islamic State’s “emir” in Southeast Asia and Omarkhayam Maute, a leader of the Maute militant group, were killed in a nighttime operation.

Philippine soldiers flashing victory signs at the end of the five-month battle. Photo: AFP

Another leader and possible moneyman for the operation, Malaysian Mahmud Ahmad, was probably also killed, the military said.

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Military spokesman, Major General Restituto Padilla, confirmed there was still ongoing gunfire, but there were “no more terrorists” and the army’s last battles were with an enemy decimated by the loss of its leadership.

A military vehicle drives through devastated Marawi. Photo: AFP

“They were formless, they had no place to run,” he said.

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Duterte had declared Marawi City liberated six days ago, even though fighting was not actually over. On Sunday, he said it was important to be vigilant because no country could escape Islamic State’s “clutches of evil”.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte salutes government troops as they travel home from their combat duty against pro-Islamic State militants. Photo: EPA

“I’m not trying to scare you, but let’s just be prepared for any event,” he said.

Lorenzana said six battalions of troops would remain in Marawi and though the battle had been won, the enemy’s radical ideology had not been completely annihilated.

Damaged buildings in Marawi, southern Philippines, on October 23, 2017. Photo: Reuters

He thanked the US, Australia, Singapore and China for providing weapons and technical support, including surveillance aircraft, and said the conflict would be a catalyst for closer international cooperation against extremism.

The government estimates the rebuilding of the heart of Marawi could cost more than US$1 billion.

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This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: battle for marawi has ended, army declares
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