‘Slain militants eyed ISIS-linked terror cell’

SULTAN KUDARAT, Philippines  – Eight suspected terrorists killed by Marines in an encounter in Barangay Butril in Palimbang town here on Thursday were bent on organizing an extremist movement linked to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), officials said yesterday.

Sources from religious communities in Lanao del Sur said Ansarul Al Khaifa, the group of the slain terrorists, is allied with Khilafa Islamiya Movement, another terrorist group with links to the ISIS.

“These are not ISIS groups per se, but they have openly been announcing their alliance with ISIS. The government should nip them in the bud this early,” a Maranaw cleric, who requested anonymity, told The STAR.

The militant group led by Jaafar Maguid and their followers had been indoctrinating villagers on their extremist objectives, the source added.

Marines recovered flags identical with the ISIS flag during clearing operations.

Members of the peace and order councils in Palimbang, Lebak and Kalamansig towns said members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front moved out of Barangay Butril during the firefight to allow the Marines to freely engage with the group.

The Moro National Liberation Front also disowned the group.

Meanwhile, Marine and police officials have yet to confirm if one of the slain gunmen was Indonesian Ibrahim Alih, alias Abdul Fatah, one of the suspects in the Oct. 12, 2002 Bali bombing. – With Roel Pareño