DA NANG, VIETNAM — President Rodrigo Duterte reports that security forces remain on guard against possible retaliatory attacks by the jihadist Islamic State (IS) forces.
This comes, as the Philippines hosts the 31st Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit next week.
Speaking to reporters in Vietnam on Thursday night, Duterte refused to divulge more information on government’s ongoing efforts against terrorism but only sought to ease any fears.
"Well, this is only… I cannot tell you about the preparations, where and what, but I can tell you that the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police are ready to meet the challenge,” he said.
On Thursday, Lisa Sidney Jones, director of the Institute of Policy Analysis and Conflict, warned that pro-Islamic State (IS) terrorists may bomb several cities, including Manila, in the aftermath of their defeat in Marawi City.
Jones also urged the government to extract information from suspected financiers of the Marawi siege who were earlier arrested.
"I think it's possible that various components of the IS alliance actually dispersed back to their home territories. I also think there is a chance we'll see retaliatory bombings in some of the urban centers in the Philippines, maybe including Manila," she said in a television interview.
