51 Dawlah Islamiya members surrender in Lanao del Sur

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines — Fifty-one members of the Islamic State-linked Dawlah Islamiya surrendered in Piagapo, Lanao del Sur on Monday.

Lt. Gen. Alfredo Rosario Jr., Western Mindanao Command chief, said the surrenderees yielded to Brig. Gen. Jose Maria Cuerpo II of the 103rd Infantry Brigade in Barangay Gacap.

Cuerpo cited intensified military operations as well as the cooperation and support of local government units and villagers for the mass surrender.

Among the surrenderees are two minors, one of them a former bomb courier.

The minors reportedly turned over a caliber .45 pistol and a 7.62-caliber sniper rifle. – John Unson