Manila: Philippine authorities are planning to cut mobile services in Marawi City to deny the Maute of a venue for airing propaganda and to forestall the possibility that the signal would be used for remotely detonating bombs.
According to Armed Forces public affairs chief, Marine Colonel Edgard Arevalo, the military is talking with mobile phone service providers to cut phone signals in the city while the government operations are under way.
Since the military launched operations seven day ago against the Lanao del Sur-based Maute, social media had been abuzz with messages concerning the conduct of the campaign. While the posts in Facebook and YouTube had been valuable in mobilising help to the embattled city, the armed forces are apprehensive that more lives would be placed in danger if the public is allowed unhampered and sometimes reckless use of internet during a time of conflict.
Just three days after the fighting started, the military has made an appeal to social media users to be more circumspect in posting comments and uploading videos that could reveal the location of government forces.
Like other radical but tech savvy groups such as the Daesh, the Maute has effectively used social media, not just for propaganda, but also for psychological warfare and recruitment.
“The Maute group is utilising the social media to gain attention and support from international terror groups. The people are unwittingly supporting this agenda when they share and post photos and videos in social media,” Col Arevalo said.
He said that sharing and posting of the movements of security forces compromises the operations and could endanger soldiers and police officers on the ground.
Armed Forces Chief of Staff General Eduardo Año said the military aims to end the fighting in Marawi City soon so that people can go back to their normal lives.
“We hope to clear Marawi City as soon as possible, and our soldiers are focused and working hard to ensure that Maute group, and those supporting this terror organisation, are neutralised,” he said.
Año further said they received information that the Maute had planned to raze to the ground the entire city of Marawi the time of Ramadan.
“The terrorist Maute-Daesh Group was surprised by the raids in the safe house occupied by Isnilon Hapilon in the village of Basak Malutlut, Marawi,” Año said.
So far, the Maute has suffered 61 dead and undetermined number of wounded.
Security forces have so far rescued or provided safe passage to 390 civilians. There were reports that more civilians are still trapped in the crossfire. So far, 19 non-combatant civilians were killed.
