Abu Sayyaf

The leader of ISIL group blew himself up along with members of his family as American forces raided his Syria hideout Thursday, the U.S. said the second time in three years the United States has taken out a leader of the violent group that has been struggling for resurgence with deadly attacks in the region.

At least 18 people were killed when two bombs hit a church on a southern Philippine island that is a stronghold of Islamist militants, the military said Sunday, days after voters backed the creation of a new Muslim autonomous region, reports AFP. 

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — A Filipino soldier, five militiamen and four villagers were killed by a powerful bomb that exploded in a van the troops were inspecting Tuesday amid threats of bombings in a southern province, military officials said.

Philippine troops engaged Islamic State-linked militants in pitched clashes on Thursday around the southern city of Marawi as the military deployed tanks to secure vital installations in a battle that has become a major test for President Rodrigo Duterte’s government.

Terrorists are planning to kidnap foreigners in tourist hotspots across the central and western Philippines, Western governments said yesterday following a foiled abduction attempt by Islamic militants a month ago.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said he has ordered his troops to bomb extremists who flee with their captives in a bid to stop a wave of kidnappings at sea, calling the loss of civilian lives in such an attack "collateral damage."

The number of maritime kidnappings hit a ten-year high in 2016, with waters off the southern Philippines becoming increasingly dangerous, the International Maritime Bureau said Jan. 10.

While the overall number of pirate attacks has declined in recent years, the IMB said 62 people worldwide were kidnapped for ransom at sea last year compared to only 19 in 2015 and nine in 2014.

The Pazardzhik District Court has released from the arrest Ahmed Musa Ahmed on bail of BGN 5,000, reported BNR.

Ahmed and 13 of his supporters have been indicted on charges of spreading the ideas of the terrorist organisation Islamic State and calling for war.

Philippine soldiers battled a group of about 120 Muslim rebels linked to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in a ten-hour assault on a southern island that killed 23 people, an army spokesman said on April 10.

Soldiers captured the Abu Sayyaf camp in a forested area on the southern island of Basilan but an improvised explosive device left behind by the rebels, injured 12 soldiers on Dec. 20, said Major Filemon Tan.

"After we captured the camp, they were clearing the bunkers when the IED exploded," he told AFP.