A five-month battle against Islamic State supporters in the southern Philippines that claimed more than 1,100 lives has ended following a final battle inside a mosque, defence chiefs said on Monday.The conclusion of the conflict ended immediate fears that IS would establish a Southeast Asian base in the southern city of Marawi.
TensionsTensions have risen in Southeast Asia over the past week, particularly in Myanmar and the Philippines. Scores of Rohingya refugees who were fleeing their homeland in northern Rakhine state of Myanmar found themselves stranded at the Bangladeshi border.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has offered to shoot criminals himself, while warning he may bring police back to the frontlines of his deadly war on drugs.Duterte made the comments late Friday following his announcement on October 11 to withdraw the police from his anti-drug war after they were accused of rights abuses in killing thousands of people while following his orders to eradicate illegal drugs in society.He replaced them with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), which
Opposites attract. China's billions are already flowing into the Philippines via online gaming and infrastructure spending. Hot portfolio flows could be next.Philippine Stock Exchange is in talks with its Shenzhen counterpart on a possible investment, CEO Ramon Monzon told Bloomberg News.
Southeast Asian nations have become increasingly concerned over environmental issues in recent years as the region has become more polluted due to rapid urbanisation and deforestation. As a whole, the region has to deal with transboundary haze pollution, depletion of natural resources and urban environmental degradation.
At first glance, the endless rows of devastated buildings could be the aftermath of a great earthquake.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday declared a southern city "liberated from terrorists' influence" but the military said the five-month battle against militants loyal to the Islamic State group was not yet over.Duterte led rain-soaked soldiers in celebrations in Marawi, a day after the military announced the death of the head of the Islamic State group in Southeast Asia, Isnilon Hapilon, in a gunbattle in the city."Ladies and gentlemen, I hereby declare Marawi
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The head of the Islamic State group in Southeast Asia, who figures on the US "most wanted terrorists" list, has been killed in the battle to reclaim a militant-held Philippines city, the country's defence minister said Monday.
Philippine central bank Governor Nestor Espenilla said contained inflation means there isn’t a need to increase interest rates in the near term."Right now, there is no need to move policy rates looking at the inflation outlook," Espenilla said in Washington where he was attending the annual International Monetary Fund meetings.
MilitaryMilitary forces were being mobilised across the region due to the rise of conflicts and insurgents. In Myanmar, the army continued to deny the severity of its actions which drove over half a million of Rohingya Muslims out of their home in northern Rakhine state and into refugee camps in Bangladesh.Up north, USA's navy force will be conducting a military drill with its South Korean counterpart as a show of force against North Korea's nuclear threats.
Philippine troops Sunday bombed militants loyal to the Islamic State group who have held out for over four months in a southern city and the military said the conflict would be over "very soon".The army previously set a target of Sunday to end the fighting in Marawi, which it said has killed more than 1,000 people.
