MARAWI, Philippines: US special forces are helping the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to end a siege of the southern town of Marawi by militants allied to Daesh (Islamic State), the US Embassy in Manila and the Philippine military said on Saturday.
“At the request of the government of the Philippines, US special operations forces are assisting the AFP with ongoing operations in Marawi that help AFP commanders on the ground in their fight against Maute and ASG militants,” the spokesperson said. ASG stands for the Abu Sayyaf militant group.
The announcement comes as casualties on both sides appeared to mount, with 13 marines killed during an "intense firefight" on Friday.
A military spokesman, Lieutenant Colonel Jo-Ar Herrera, told a news conference on Saturday that the marines were conducting operations to clear positions in the city of Marawi, where hundreds of Daesh-militants are holding fort.
The deaths take the number of security force members killed to 58, with 20 civilians and more than a hundred rebel fighters also killed in the Marawi battles.
The little-known Maute group has been a fierce enemy of a military with superior firepower and greater troop strength.
The Philippine military has said the aim was to end the siege by Monday, the Philippines' independence day.
"As long as we sustain the fight, as long as we are able to destroy the elements of the local terrorist group we can reach that," Herrera said of the June 12 target.
The seizure of Marawi by hundreds of fighters who have sworn allegiance to Daesh, including dozens from neighboring countries and the Middle East, has fueled concern that the ultra-radical group is gaining a foothold in Southeast Asia.
Military spokesman Herrera confirmed that US special forces were assisting local troops, but said they were only providing technical support.
“They are not fighting. They are just providing technical support,” Herrera said.
A US P3 Orion surveillance plane was seen flying over the town on Friday, but there has been no evidence that the United States has put troops on the ground there.
The assistance comes after months of strain between the two long-time allies that was stoked by Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte’s hostility toward Washington and his pledges to throw US troops out of the country.
Washington deployed special forces soldiers to Mindanao in 2002 to train and advise Philippine units fighting Abu Sayyaf militants in a program that once involved 1,200 Americans.
It was discontinued in 2015 but a small presence remained for logistics and technical support.
The United States and the Philippines have been allies for decades. Their relationship provided Washington with a strategic foothold in Asia, and offered Manila a shield against China’s assertiveness in the region.
But Duterte has openly scorned the alliance, seeing it as an obstacle to a rapprochement with China, and has repeatedly lambasted Washington for treating his country as a lackey.
(Reporting by Manuel Mogato)
US forces join Philippine troops in fight against Daesh-linked group as casualties mount
US forces join Philippine troops in fight against Daesh-linked group as casualties mount
![Debris flies in the air as Philippine Air Force fighter jets bomb suspected locations of Daesh-linked militants as fighting continues in Marawi city, southern Philippines, on Friday. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila) US forces join Philippine troops in fight against Daesh-linked group as casualties mount](https://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/styles/n_670_395/public/2017/06/10/929346-1711630312.jpg?itok=BzoqxsE7)