MARAWI CITY, Philippines: Thousands of civilians hoping to flee fighting in the besieged Philippines city of Marawi remained trapped on Sunday after a four-hour truce to evacuate Residents was disrupted by gunfire.
Only 134 were freed on Sunday, less than on previous days, despite government hopes that more than 1,000 would be able to leave a city battered by 13 days of intense fighting.
President Rodrigo Duterte predicted the siege would be over within days despite fierce resistance by militants aligned with Islamic State (IS) in the dense urban heart of the city on the southern island of Mindanao.
"This will be over in about three more days," Duterte said on Saturday after visiting a hospital in Cagayan de Oro where wounded soldiers were being treated. "About 400 local militants reinforced by about 40 foreign fighters stormed Marawi on May 23, using sophisticated battlefield tactics to seize large swathes of the lakeside city.
06-05-2017, 04:51 AM
Residents trapped as gunfire mars truce in Philippines city
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