FORT MAGSAYSAY, Nueva Ecija: Troops should prepare for a possible repeat of the Marawi siege in “another city” in the country, Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana told them on Monday.
Lorenzana admitted that more foreign terrorists are reported to have entered Mindanao.
In a speech during the Philippine Army Special Operations Command (SOCOM) turnover ceremony here, the defense chief warned the troops that they will again be called upon later on, or “maybe immediately” as there’s still “some work to do in Mindanao.
“It is not far-fetched that one of these days they (Daesh-inspired militants) will again hold another city for quite some time.”
Lorenzana made the statement after a petition urged the Supreme Court to stop the year-long extension of martial law in Mindanao. The petitioners claimed martial law has no factual and legal basis.
But in a news conference after the turnover ceremony, the defense chief expressed readiness to defend the extension of martial law as there is “continuing rebellion” in the southern Philippines.
“It started in May and continued until October. It is the belief of the armed forces and the police that there is continuing reorganization of the rebellious forces. They would again conduct a Marawi-type operation some time in the future. I also believe that,” Lorenzana said.
He added that “the rebellious forces were not all killed in Marawi.” Quite a number, according to the defense chief, “were able to extricate themselves, and they (now) are somewhere there in Mindanao.
“Some of them are in Central Mindanao, some are in Lanao,” Lorenzana said.
Based on reports from the military, the police and also from civilians, recruitment is in progress and there are also small groups conducting training.
“So we will address those during this martial law extension,” Lorenza stated.
When asked to confirm a statement by a Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) official on the arrival of more foreign fighters in Mindanao, Lorenzana said: “That is also what we got and we are trying to confirm it. That’s also another reason why it bolsters our argument to extend the martial law.”
Lorenzana noted that if it is confirmed that more foreign terrorists have entered the country, “the more we are going to do it strictly in Mindanao, fighting against them using martial law.”
Mohagher Iqbal, chair of the MILF peace panel, earlier told Arab News that despite the liberation of Marawi City in October last year, Daesh-oriented groups in Mindanao have not been completely defeated.
“And as far as an intelligence report is concerned, their recruitment is ongoing in Mindanao,” he said. “Expect that they will surface once again.”
The MILF official added that “reports of the arrival of Daesh personalities from the Middle East is very much happening in Mindanao, especially in the island province of Sulu and Basilan.
“I don’t have the actual count but they are increasing as per information coming from the ground,” Iqbal said, noting that because of what happened to them in Iraq and in Syria where they were practically defeated, remnants of Daesh are now finding ways to survive.
“And they’re finding Mindanao as one of the alternative places where they can survive because they have a natural ally here in the Abu Sayyaf and Daesh-oriented groups in Mindanao. They will find these places as the most natural ones to go.”
Meanwhile, when asked by Arab News if high-value targets had been identified among the foreign terrorists who may already be in Mindanao, Lorenzana said “none so far.” He added, though, that for now the military is going after the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF).
“We are actually trying to contain the BIFF because they are the ones giving us problems now. They are harassing civilians; they are also fighting our troops. So our attention is now focused on them.”
Another Marawi-type siege may be coming, says Philippines
Another Marawi-type siege may be coming, says Philippines
Biden spoke with families of Americans detained in Afghanistan, White House says
- Efforts to secure the release of the Americans continue, a second source familiar with the initiative said on Sunday
WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden spoke on Sunday with the families of three Americans detained in Afghanistan by its Taliban rulers since 2022, and emphasized his commitment to bringing home Americans wrongfully held overseas, the White House said.
Biden’s administration has been negotiating with the Taliban since at least July about a US proposal to release the three Americans — Ryan Corbett, George Glezmann and Mahmood Habibi — in exchange for Muhammad Rahim Al-Afghani, a high-profile prisoner held in Guantanamo Bay, Reuters reported last week, citing a source familiar with the discussions.
Efforts to secure the release of the Americans continue, a second source familiar with the initiative said on Sunday.
Corbett and Habibi were detained in separate incidents in August 2022 a year after the Taliban seized Kabul amid the chaotic US troop withdrawal. Glezmann was detained later in 2022 while visiting as a tourist.
Ahmad Habibi, Mahmood Habibi’s brother, who was on the call on Sunday, welcomed the discussion with Biden.
“President Biden was very clear in telling us that he would not trade Rahim if the Taliban do not let my brother go,” he said. “He said he would not leave him behind. My family is very grateful that he is standing up for my brother.”
The Taliban, which denies holding Habibi, had countered the US proposal with an offer to exchange Glezmann and Corbett for Rahim and two others, one of the sources told Reuters last week.
The White House noted that Biden has brought home more than 75 Americans unjustly detained around the world, including from Myanmar, China, Gaza, Haiti, Iran, Russia, Rwanda, Venezuela and West Africa. His administration also brought home all Americans detained in Afghanistan before the US military withdrawal, it said.
“President Biden and his team have worked around the clock, often in partnership with key allies, to negotiate for the release of Americans held hostage or unjustly detained abroad so that they can be reunited with their families, and will continue to do so throughout the remainder of the term,” it added.
A Senate intelligence committee report on the agency’s so-called enhanced interrogation program called Rahim an “Al-Qaeda facilitator” and said he was arrested in Pakistan in June 2007 and “rendered” to the CIA the following month.
He was kept in a secret CIA “black site,” where he was subjected to tough interrogation methods, including extensive sleep deprivation, and then sent to Guantanamo Bay in March 2008, the report said.
Biden last week sent 11 Guantanamo detainees to Oman, reducing the prisoner population at the detention center in Cuba by nearly half as part of its effort to close the facility as the president prepares to leave office on Jan. 20.
Comoros goes to polls in vote snubbed by opposition
- Critics said Nour’s new powers — which entail approving all decrees issued by ministers and governors — elevate his role to that of de facto prime minister
MORONI: The Indian Ocean nation of Comoros headed to the polls Sunday to elect lawmakers, with many opposition groups planning to snub a vote they say lacks transparency.
Comorian President Azali Assoumani’s eldest son, Nour El-Fath Azali, who is 39 and the country’s secretary general, is running to represent a constituency just outside the capital Moroni.
Several voting booths opened late after material failed to materialize in time, a reporter saw.
One US observer, James Burns, said officials had to “improvise” one booth comprising two panels around a table.
Nearby, another booth consisted of a simple box placed on a chair — making it nigh on impossible to preserve voter privacy as ballots were cast.
Before he was appointed to the post in July 2024, Nour had been a private adviser to his father, 65, a former military ruler who came to power in a 1999 coup.
Critics said Nour’s new powers — which entail approving all decrees issued by ministers and governors — elevate his role to that of de facto prime minister.
Azali was reelected president in January 2024 after a disputed vote followed by two days of deadly protests.
“Thank God, since the beginning of the campaign there has not been any trouble. It’s raining but it’s a blessing,” Azali said after voting in his hometown of Mitsoudje, 15 kilometers south of the capital Moroni.
“I thank the opposition candidates who stood in the elections. We need a constructive opposition,” he added.
Several opposition candidates were standing election to avoid an outcome similar to the boycott of the 2020 legislative vote, which gave free rein to his ruling Convention for the Renewal of the Comoros party, or the CRC.
One man clad in a boubou and kofia, typical Comorian headgear, complained that “I dipped my finger in the inkwell but the ink’s already gone,” showing his index finger with no indelible ink stain.
The CRC is expected to dominate parliament again in this year’s vote, not least as its candidates in some constituencies face no competition.
Thirty-three members of parliament will be elected directly by around 340,000 registered voters in a two-round ballot.
A second round of voting will take place on Feb. 16.
Azali in January 2024 officially won 57 percent of the vote, allowing him to remain in power until 2029.
But the strongman’s opponents said the election was marred by fraud, and court challenges were dismissed.
One person was killed and several others injured in the violence that erupted in the aftermath of the election in the country of some 870,000 people.
Direct commercial flights resume between Rome and Tripoli
- Many airlines suspended flights in and out of Libya since the civil war erupted in 2014
TRIPOLI: Italy’s ITA Airways resumed direct flights to Libya’s Tripoli on Sunday, the first airline from a major west European nation to do so after a 10-year hiatus due to civil war in the north African country, ITA and Tripoli’s transport minister said.
ITA said it would operate two direct flights a week from Rome’s Fiumicino airport to Tripoli’s Mitiga airport.
“We are proud to inaugurate today our first direct commercial flight between Tripoli and Rome Fiumicino, strengthening commercial and cultural ties between Libya and Italy in support of bilateral relations between the two countries,” Andrea Benassi, ITA airways general manager, said in a statement.
Many international airlines have suspended flights in and out of Libya since the civil war in 2014 that spawned two rival administrations in east and west following the NATO-backed uprising that toppled Muammar Qaddafi in 2011.
HIGHLIGHTS
• Some airlines resumed flights to Libya after security was restored when major fighting paused with a ceasefire in 2020.
• But efforts to end the political crisis have failed, with factions occasionally staging armed clashes and competing for control over economic resources.
• The EU still bans Libyan civil aviation from its airspace.
Some airlines resumed flights to Libya after security was restored when major fighting paused with a ceasefire in 2020. But efforts to end the political crisis have failed, with factions occasionally staging armed clashes and competing for control over economic resources.
The EU still bans Libyan civil aviation from its airspace
The minister of transport in the government of national unity, Mohamed Al-Shahoubi, said the resumption of ITA flights between Tripoli and Rome confirmed “the safety and security of our airspace and the eligibility of Libyan airports.”
Shahoubi said at a ceremony marking the arrival of the ITA flight at Mitiga that Tripoli is ready “to grant ITA additional transport rights to connect Libyan airports with other destinations in EU countries.”
Shahoubi said Libya was looking forward to the return of some Gulf countries in the first half of 2025.
He added that the airlines of Tunisia, Egypt, Malta, Turkiye, and Jordan had already resumed direct flights with Libya.
Ivan Bassato, chief aviation officer of Rome’s airports, said the Libya route was a strategic bridge between the two countries.
Flights would strengthen “the positioning of our hub to support the connectivity of Africa, a continent that in 2024 reached a record level exceeding the threshold of 2 million passengers to and from Rome, up 38 percent compared to the previous year.”
Saudi ambassador to Kabul meets Afghan foreign minister, discusses bilateral relations
- The development comes week after the Kingdom’s embassy in Kabul resumed its diplomatic activities in Afghanistan
- Afghan official says the two sides discussed ways to capitalize on existing opportunities to enhance cooperation
ISLAMABAD: Saudi Arabia’s Ambassador to Afghanistan Faisal bin Talaq Al-Baqmi has met Afghan Foreign Minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi and discussed with him bilateral relations between the two countries, the Saudi embassy said on Sunday.
The development comes week after the Kingdom’s embassy in the Afghan capital of Kabul resumed diplomatic activities to provide services to the Afghan people.
The Afghan foreign ministry had welcomed Saudi Arabia’s decision to resume diplomatic operations in Kabul, more than three years after Riyadh withdrew its staff during the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.
The meeting between the Saudi ambassador and the Afghan foreign minister was held in Kabul, according to the Saudi embassy. It was also attended by Deputy Head of Mission Mishaal Mutlaq Al-Shammari.
“The meeting discussed bilateral relations, ways to enhance them, and topics of common interest,” the Saudi embassy said on X.
Hafiz Zia Ahmad, a deputy spokesman at the Afghan foreign ministry, said the meeting underlined matters related to expanding bilateral relations between Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia, delivering consular services to Afghan nationals residing in the Kingdom, and capitalizing on existing opportunities to enhance cooperation.
“FM Muttaqi underscored the need to increase the exchange of delegations between the two countries,” Ahmad said on X. “Additionally, FM Muttaqi also expressed hope that the Saudi government would consider increasing the quota for Hajj & Umrah for Afghan pilgrims & extending support for the provision of consular services to Afghan nationals residing in Saudi Arabia.”
The Saudi ambassador affirmed the Kingdom’s commitment to extending support to Afghans and said the resumption of diplomatic activities in Kabul was aimed at “maximizing all the existing opportunities available,” Ahmad added.
Ties between Saudi Arabia and Afghanistan date back to 1932, when the Kingdom became the first Islamic country to provide aid to the Afghan people during their ordeals.
In recent years, Saudi Arabia has launched numerous projects in Afghanistan through the King Salman Humanitarian Aid & Relief Center (KSrelief), focusing on health, education services, water and food security. Riyadh has also participated in all international donor conferences and called for establishing security and stability in Afghanistan following years of armed conflicts.
Saudi Arabia has continued to provide consular services in Afghanistan since November 2021 and provided humanitarian aid through KSrelief.
Sri Lankans rally to stop deportation of Rohingya refugees to Myanmar
- Activists stage protests in northeastern Mullaitivu district and capital Colombo
- Rohingya risk deadly sea crossings as fighting intensifies in Myanmar
COLOMBO: Sri Lankan civil society groups and activists are mobilizing to save more than 100 Rohingya refugees rescued off the Indian Ocean island nation last month following a government announcement that they will be deported.
A group of about 100 Rohingya refugees, which reportedly included over two dozen children, was rescued off the coast of the northeastern Mullaitivu district on Dec. 19.
Several protests were recently organized in Mullaitivu and the capital Colombo after Sri Lanka’s Minister of Public Security and Parliamentary Affairs Ananda Wijepala announced on Jan. 3 that the government was in talks with Myanmar authorities over the deportation of the Rohingya refugees.
“These are stateless people, they don’t have a home to go to,” social activist Thasneema Dahlan, who took part in a protest in Colombo on Friday, told Arab News.
“The Rohingya are massacred and chased and terrorized in their own home, and that is why they fled their own country looking for greener pastures elsewhere.”
The mostly Muslim Rohingya — the “world’s most persecuted minority,” according to the UN — have faced decades of oppression in Myanmar.
In 2017, more than 730,000 Rohingya from Rakhine State were forced to flee to neighboring Bangladesh to escape a brutal military crackdown that UN experts have referred to as a “genocidal campaign,” amid evidence of ethnic cleansing, mass rape, and killings.
As Rakhine became a focal point in Myanmar’s intensifying nationwide civil war, hundreds of Rohingya have been fleeing the country in recent weeks through dangerous sea crossings, often on rickety boats. Last year, more than 7,800 people made such attempts, according to the UN refugee agency — an 80 percent increase compared with 2023.
“Their objective wasn’t to get to Sri Lanka. Their objective was to get somewhere, anywhere where they could survive,” Dahlan said. “We are urging the government to … please not send them back, not repatriate them, not deport them, because that is just sending them back to death.”
Sri Lanka, which is not a signatory to the 1951 UN Refugee Convention and its 1967 protocol, is a transit point for refugees until the UNHCR helps them resettle in another country.
In 2022, its navy also rescued about 100 Rohingya refugees, who have been under the care of local NGOs as they await resettlement.
Sri Lankan activists have also filed petitions with the government, urging authorities to relocate the new group of refugees from the Keppapulavu Air Force base in Mullaitivu, where they have stayed since Dec. 23. According to protesters, aid agencies, including the UN, have been stopped from meeting the Rohingya.
“Sheltering the refugees under a militarized environment is incompatible with international humanitarian norms and basic human values,” the North-East Coordinating Committee, which organized the Mullaitivu protest on Thursday, said in a letter.
Ruki Fernando, a human rights activist based in Colombo, said the Rohingya refugees should be “kept in a place under civil administration,” not military.
“Many Sri Lankans have been refugees. We need to help others. It’s our legal obligation … under customary international law, non-refoulement is prohibited. It means no one fleeing a well-founded fear of persecution should be sent back,” Fernando told Arab News, referring to the hundreds of thousands of Sri Lankan Tamils who fled the country’s civil war between 1983 and 2009.
“We also have moral, ethical obligations to welcome, care and support those in distress. Our religious and spiritual values teach us this.”
