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WORLD NEWS Wednesday 11 december 2019

Duterte to end martial law in Philippine south after 2 years

By JIM GOMEZ tinued to recruit fighters
Associated Press and plot attacks.
MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Duterte decided not to
President Rodrigo Duterte further extend martial law,
has decided to end more which expires at the end of
than two years of martial the year, after his defense
law in the southern Philip- and security advisers pro-
pines after government vided an assessment that
forces weakened Islamic “the terrorist and extremist
militant groups there with rebellion” has been weak-
the capture and killing of ened with the losses of the
their leaders, his spokes- militants’ leaders and a
man said Tuesday. drop in crime in the region,
Duterte placed the Mind- presidential spokesman
anao region under martial Salvador Panelo said.
law after hundreds of local “The (presidential) palace
militants aligned with the is confident on the capa-
Islamic State group and bility of our security forces
backed by foreign fight- in maintaining the peace
ers occupied buildings, a and security of Mindanao
commercial district and In this July 22, 2019, file photo, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte speaks during his 4th State of the without extending martial
communities in Marawi city Nation Address at the 18th Congress at the House of Representatives in Quezon city, Philippines. law,” Panelo said in a state-
starting May 23, 2017, in the Associated Press ment. “The people of Mind-
worst security crisis Duterte anao are assured that any
has faced. of intense airstrikes and tralian surveillance aircraft. martial law in Mindanao incipient major threat in the
Troops quelled the disas- ground offensives with the The Philippine Congress three times after Duterte region would be nipped in
trous siege after five months help of American and Aus- approved an extension of warned that militants con- the bud.”q

Hong Kong police defuse bombs designed ‘to kill and to maim’

Associated Press ready to be used.” Their blast could have
HONG KONG (AP) — Hong The origin of the bombs been felt over a distance
Kong police said they de- was not clear. The Wah of 100 meters (yards) or
fused two large home- Yan College said the more, police said.
made bombs packed with bombs were found in a Alick McWhirter, the police
nails and designed “to public area of the school explosive squad’s senior
kill and to maim people” and that there is no evi- disposal officer, said that
in the latest reported sei- dence linking them to any had the bombs exploded,
zure of weaponry during of its staff or students. they could “have killed
six months of anti-govern- Police said the bombs and injured large numbers
ment protests that have were radio-controlled, to of people.”
shaken the city. be triggered with mobile In July, police announced
Police said the bombs phones. the seizure of about 2 ki-
found Monday evening in- They contained 10 kilo- lograms (4.4 pounds) of A police officer from the bomb disposal squad putting on
side a high school on Hong grams (22 pounds) of high TATP, which has been used protective gear during a demonstration for media in Hong
Kong Island were “com- explosives and shrapnel in militant attacks world- Kong, Friday, Dec. 6, 2019.
plete, fully functional and that would inflict injury. wide. q Associated Press