Troops in tough push in Marawi, three dead

Philippine troops have fought one of their toughest clashes against militants loyal to Islamic State in a southern town, and three soldiers were killed and 52 wounded, many by rebel bombs as they pushed forward, an officer said yesterday. The Islamists shocked the country by seizing large parts of Marawi town in May. After more than 100 days of fighting, pockets of fighters remain dug in in the ruins.The army made its push on Thursday, the eve of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, and seized a bridge in what military spokesman Brigadier General Restituto Padilla described as some of the toughest fighting yet.At least five militants were killed, he said.“We are working to clear the remaining areas where the enemy is holding out,” Padilla said in a statement.“Following a short pause early today, to give due respect to the solemnity and significance of this day, the operations will continue without any let up,” he said, referring to the Muslim holiday.The military has expressed confidence the end is in sight for what has been its biggest security crisis in years, which started in May, but the latest casualties underscore the difficulty that they still face in the battlefield.In all, 620 militants, 45 civilians and 136 soldiers and policemen have been killed in the fighting that has displaced hundreds of thousands of people and raised fears about Islamic State establishing a foothold in Southeast Asia.The military has missed repeated targets and deadlines to crush the rebels in Marawi, a largely Muslim town on the southern island of Mindanao, raising questions about whether it can contain a wider rebellion.President Rodrigo Duterte, who placed all of Mindanao under martial law until the end of the year after the militants occupied Marawi, has urged lawmakers to approve funds to beef up the army by 20,000 troops.Yesterday, Duterte said he saw no reason to lift martial law in Mindanao, citing violence in other parts of the island.“The way it looks, there seems to be some spillover,” he said, without elaborating.Muslim rebels in the south of the predominately Christian Philippines have for generations battled for greater autonomy but in recent years hopes for peace were raised with several factions engaged in talks.But the Marawi fighting has dimmed those hopes.Australia will send military advisers to the Philippines after President Rodrigo Duterte yesterday formally accepted Canberra’s offer to assist in the fight against Islamic State forces in the south of the country.Australia’s Foreign Minister Julie Bishop told reporters in Canberra it had not yet been decided how many advisers would be sent or where the training of Philippine troops in counter-terrorism tactics would take place.But she emphatically ruled out Australian troops taking part in the fighting in the southern Philippine city of Marawi, where 750 people have been killed and 360,000 displaced as government troops battle Islamic State forces.“It’s clearly in the interests of the stability and security of the Philippines and our region that the Armed Forces of the Philippines are able to re-take control of Marawi,” Bishop told reporters, according to a transcript supplied by her office.“Australia has offered to help, the Philippines have said they are open to further assistance, but they haven’t given any details of what they would require.”Australia already has supplied two aerial reconnaissance aircraft to help monitor ground movements.Philippines military spokesman General Restituto Padilla said yesterday Australia’s offer was appreciated amid what was expected to be a drawn out battle. “It will help our troops on the ground find, fix and neutralise all the enemies,” he said, according to the broadcaster ABC.The Philippines constitution prohibits foreign forces being engaged in actual combat roles, so Australian troops would provide training and intelligence, he said.Australia’s Defence Minister Marise Payne will visit Manila next week for further talks about the assistance.