4 civilians escape after 45 days in Marawi

ZAMBOANGA CITY , Philippines  – Intense bombing provided the opening for four civilians to escape yesterday after being trapped for 45 days in Marawi City.

The military’s Joint Task Force Marawi (JTFM) said the four civilians, all construction workers, were rescued in Barangay Banggolo where they had been hiding from roaming gunmen of the Maute group.

The military said the four took the chance to escape during intense shelling of Maute positions in the area and successfully reached the government side.

Ronnie Villanueva said they managed to contact their families through text messages after finding a spare cell phone battery.

He said they decided to escape as the number of militants where they were hiding had dwindled.

The military said the four civilians were provided with medical attention and were debriefed before being reunited with their families.

Armed Forces spokesman Brig. Gen. Restituto Padilla said some 200 to 300 civilians are still believed trapped in the area where less than a hundred militants continue to be in control.

Meanwhile, aid for Marawi residents continue to pour in, with government agencies and foreign donors giving relief to evacuees of the war-torn city.

John Magno, regional secretary of the Department of Education-Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (DepEd-ARMM), said the Turkish government had committed to feed the school children in Marawi City.

Magno said the Turk Isbirligi Ve Koordinasyon Idaresi Baskanligi (TIKA) would help DepEd expand its feeding program for school children now in designated temporary learning spaces.

TIKA is also known as the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency.

“TIKA will help expand our program so we can feed more school children now in learning centers we recently established in school campuses in neutral areas outside Marawi City,” Magno said. 

                 – With John Unson