Australia sends spy planes to Mindanao

MANILA, Philippines -  The Australian government has deployed two spy planes in Mindanao to help the Philippine government in its ongoing campaign to liberate Marawi City from the Islamic State (IS)-linked Maute terror group.

Australian Defense Minister Marise Payne, in a statement released by the Australian embassy in Manila, yesterday said the two AP-3C Orion aircraft would provide surveillance support to the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in fighting terror.

“I recently spoke with my counterpart Secretary of Defense Delfin Lorenzana about how Australia can assist the Philippines in its fight against extremists. We agreed the best way to defeat terrorism in our region is for us to work together,” Payne said.

“The regional threat from terrorism, in particular from Daesh and foreign fighters, is a direct threat to Australia and our interests,” she said, referring to the Islamic State by its other name.

Malacañang welcomed Australia’s assistance. “As we previously stated, we would gladly welcome any form of foreign assistance allowed under our Constitution to help suppress the rebellion in Marawi,” presidential spokesman Ernesto Abella said in a press briefing yesterday in Davao City.

“Our defense officials are in close coordination with their Australian counterparts in the latter’s offer of providing surveillance support to the Armed Forces of the Philippines,” he added.

AFP Eastern Mindanao Command deputy commander Brig. Gen. Gilbert Gapay noted that intelligence and reconnaissance capability is crucial in every military operation. 

“So having these capabilities, it could be used in any military operation, not just Marawi, but of course in all other operations in Mindanao,” Gapay said.  

Payne said Australia would continue to work with its partners in Southeast Asia to fight terrorism.

File photo shows an Australian airman looking out from the cockpit of a AP-3C Orion. AFP

Payne said Australia has an extensive defense cooperation program with the Philippines, which includes counterterrorism cooperation.

Australia is the second country to confirm providing military hardware to support Filipino troops battling the Maute militants. The first was the US.

Russia has also expressed willingness to support the Philippines in its fight against extremists.

In an interview with Net 25 on Thursday, Russian Ambassador Igor Khovaev said Moscow is ready to grant any request for assistance from the Duterte government and share its expertise in fighting terrorists.

The battle to retake Marawi – now on its fifth week – has claimed 369 lives, according to official estimates.

The siege of Marawi has also alarmed Southeast Asian nations which fear IS – on a backfoot in Iraq and Syria – is trying to set up a stronghold in the Muslim south of the mainly Roman Catholic Philippines that could threaten the whole region.

Indonesian and Malaysian warships launched joint counterinsurgency maneuvers with Philippine vessels in waters nearby.

The United States has deployed troops near the besieged city, although they are not fighting there, and also provided a P-3 surveillance plane to assist the Philippines in battle.

On Thursday, the military said about 100 militants remain in Marawi, confined to an area of about a square kilometer. That figure is less than the estimated 400 or 500 fighters who seized the city on May 23.

On May 23, President Duterte placed the entire Mindanao under martial law and suspended the writ of habeas corpus in the region after the outbreak of hostilities in Marawi.

Trilateral meet

In his Davao City briefing, Abella also said the Philippines would vigorously work with Indonesia and Malaysia in preventing IS from setting up bases in the region.

“Foreign military intelligence officials from the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia had a fruitful and productive discussion on a trilateral cooperation aimed at preventing extremists and terrorists from establishing operational bases in Southeast Asia,” Abella said.

“Let us underline that their joint aim, the end game, is to prevent the establishment of operational bases in Southeast Asia,” he added.

“The three countries have agreed to work together to jointly develop and implement counterterrorism measures and strategies,” he added. 

The trilateral security meeting happened as Philippine security forces are trying to clear Marawi City of the Maute group. Eight of the militants killed during clashes were foreign fighters from Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Yemen and Chechnya, according to defense officials.

AFP’s Gapay, for his part, said there are about 40 foreign terrorists in the Philippines based on latest intelligence reports.

He said security forces have identified the militants, who include Malaysians, Indonesians, Arabs and Pakistanis.

The foreign terrorists, Gapay said, may have slipped into the Philippines through the porous southern backdoor.

“We are not also discounting the possibility that some may have slipped in the country through our airports and seaports. So I guess we have to really tighten and enhance our security measures as far as the immigration is concerned,” Gapay said.

“There is really a need to enhance the security of our southern backdoor… We have to intensify maritime patrols. The recent trilateral agreement is a welcome development because with Malaysia and Indonesia assisting us, the joint patrols there would really enhance (security in) the porous borders in the south,” he added.

Some American lawmakers have expressed concerns over Marawi City becoming an IS hub and suggested US troops in the Philippines be given a greater role in the operations in Mindanao. 

American soldiers only provide technical assistance like intelligence information to their Philippine counterparts as the Constitution bars foreign troops from joining direct combat operations. 

Abella maintained that the Philippine military alone is capable of addressing the threats in Marawi.

“Like the President said, we’re quite capable at this stage. We welcome any support, but at this stage we take the lead, along with the regional states around us,” he said.

“We have actually shown that we can back the statements of an independent foreign stance,” he added.

Meanwhile, militant groups are calling on President Duterte to stop the aerial bombing of Marawi City, saying it would only worsen the plight of residents and further fuel extremism.

In a statement, the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) said it rejects “any suggestion that the Marawi crisis will end through the carpet bombing of the city.” It said “President Duterte should know better” and look for other ways to end the crisis.

It added Duterte’s approach “will not suppress terrorism and will only result in unprecedented destruction.”

The group said the people of Marawi themselves were appealing for an end to air strikes on militants holed up in Marawi City.

Members of Bayan and affiliate militant groups like Gabriela and the National Union of Students of the Philippines converged at Plaza Miranda in Quiapo yesterday to protest the bombing of Marawi City and demand the lifting of martial law in Mindanao.

The rallyists later marched to Mendiola where they held programs denouncing martial law as well as the aerial bombing of Marawi.  –  Alexis Romero, Edith Regalado, Ghio Ong, Michael Punongbayan