‘Philippines taking bold steps vs terror’

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine government will continue to take “bold and decisive” steps while following the rule of law in fighting terrorism, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said yesterday.

In a statement, the DFA said the government is paying attention to the US State Department’s “Country Reports on Terrorism 2016” as this “helps elucidate further the very clear and present danger posed by terrorism in the country.”

The report, released Wednesday, showed the Philippines among five countries with the most number of terror attacks last year. It pointed out that more than half or 55 percent of the 11,072 terrorist attacks happened in Iraq, Afghanistan, India, Pakistan and the Philippines.

It added that the emergence of extremists affiliated with the Islamic State (IS), the persistent kidnapping by the Abu Sayyaf, bombings and frequent attacks on government forces “indicated that domestic and international terrorism remained a serious problem.”

“The Duterte administration recognized this early, and will continue to take bold and decisive steps to eliminate this nefarious threat, destroy their resource channels from illicit drugs and other crimes, and ensure that the Philippines will not be a haven for their operations,” the DFA said.

“As we work within the rule of law and with international partners, the government will spare no effort to achieve these objectives and secure a safe and peaceful future for the Filipino people,” it said.

The US State Department report came as clashes between government troops and IS-linked Maute terror group in Marawi City entered its 10th week with the military saying 413 terrorists, 98 soldiers and policemen and 45 civilians have been killed in the fighting since May 23.

It also said that some investigations and responses to terrorist incidents were inefficient because multiple agencies have jurisdiction over counterterrorism efforts.

Duterte placed the entire Mindanao under martial law following the attack of Maute terrorists to prevent a spillover of the skirmishes to adjoining regions.

The report also noted that the Duterte administration’s focus on illegal drugs “has increased workload and operational tempo for security forces.”