Government troops are determined to sustain 24/7 operations to try to meet President Duterte’s deadline in ending the conflict in Marawi City in three days, a military spokesman said Monday.
Armed Forces spokesman Restituto Padilla however said the military continues to face “complications” such as the enemies’ use of human shields and places of worship that hamper an all-out pursuit against them.
“Our commanders have tried to meet the deadline. There’s no denying that. We have gone all out. We have done all our best and we have been operating 24/7. This operation will continue at that pace, we will not change that,” said Padilla.
Padilla said the presence of civilians, the urban terrain and other factors have made “our troops less capable of expeditiously addressing many of these threats.”
The military earlier was unable to meet the June 2 deadline imposed by Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana to completely clear Marawi City of the Maute terror group. (Genalyn D. Kabiling)