Philippines soldiers killed in 'friendly fire' air strike in Marawi

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"This is a case of friendly fire".

Militants flying black Islamic State (IS) group flags rampaged through Marawi almost two weeks ago, triggering clashes with troops and police that have left at least 178 people dead.

Mr. Lorenzana said two Marchetti S-260 planes operated in "tandem" when the aircraft using "conventional bombs" missed the target and hit the soldiers.

In a speech before the troops in Mactan in Cebu City in the central Philippines, Duterte said that he has accepted the offer of Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) founding chairman Nur Misuari to integrate some 2,000 to 3,000 MNLF fighters into the Armed Force of the Philippines to help crush the Maute group.

The armed forces have used a combination of ground troops and rocket strikes from helicopters since the weekend to try flush rebels of the Maute group out of buildings. "We mourn the loss of 11 of our fearless harbingers of peace and the wounding of 7 others", AFP spokesman Brigadier-General Restituto Padilla said in a separate press briefing.

"They are ISIS members".

MANILA, Philippines (AP) - Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said Sunday that he will not negotiate with militants aligned with the Islamic State group who are holding hostages in a besieged southern city, and that he has ordered troops to kill the gunmen even if they slaughter the hostages.

"We don't have any record of them coming through the proper channel, through the airports".

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"There's only one way, through the backdoor, maybe coming from Indonesia or from Malaysia, from Sabah", he added. The group has pledged loyalty to the ISIS.

"The rebellion in Mindanao ... It has transmogrified into invasion by foreign terrorists", said Philippines Solicitor General Jose Calida during a press briefing last month.

"They have taken part in terrorist activities there".

Militants from Southeast Asia fighting for ISIS in Iraq and Syria released a video past year urging sympathizers to pick up the fight in the southern Philippines.

Shortly after the violence erupted Duterte imposed martial law across Mindanao, home to 20-million people, to quell what he said was an IS bid to establish a base in the Philippines. Earlier this week, officials said government forces were in near complete control of Marawi, but rooting out the last pockets of resistance seems to be taking longer than first expected.

"Complications have been coming out: the continued use of civilians, potential hostages that may still be in their hands, the use of places of worship. and other factors that complicates the battle because of its urban terrain", he said.

After eleven days of fighting, the death toll reached 175 - Maute militants at 120, civilians at 19 and government forces at 36.

While touring a Japanese warship docked at a former USA navy base on Sunday, Duterte said he had accepted the offer of a second Muslim guerrilla group, the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), which signed a peace deal with Manila in 1996, to send 2,000 fighters to battle the IS-linked militants. "I really don't know, my figure is about 250-400, a lot less", he told reporters. The Philippine army affirmed that 90 percent of the city's areas were freed from the militants.

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