Muslim Insurgency in the Philippines - Part 3 of 3

Philippine wars -
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MUSLIM INSURGENCY IN THE PHILIPPINES - Part 3 of 3
The Muslim insurgency in the Philippines was a conflict in the Mindanao and Sulu regions of the Philippines, which involved multiple armed groups. Peace deals have been signed between the Philippine government and two major armed groups, the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), but other smaller armed groups continue to exist.
The Philippine government has signed peace agreements with the two main Moro nationalist groups, the Moro National Liberation Front, or MNLF, and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, or MILF - with these peace agreements ostensibly bringing an end to the Moros’ quest for independence with their agreeing to Muslim political autonomy within the sovereignty of the Philippines.
However, many other smaller armed groups remain, most of them being breakaway groups of the MNLF or MILF. Many of these newer groups, notably, the Abu Sayyaf, Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, the Maute Group, and Ansar Khalifa, have declared their allegance to ISIS, the multi-national terrorist organization also known as ISIL or “Islamic State”. These newer Moro groups advocate radical Islamic fundamentalism and use terrorist acts to achieve their stated goal of establishing an Islamic state in the southern Philippines.
1 - Abu Sayyaf
The Abu Sayyaf is a militant group that was formed in 1989 by radical ex-MNLF members who had fought in Afghanistan during the Soviet occupation and had returned to the Philippines influenced by radical Islamic fundamentalism. The Abu Sayyaf has been designated a terrorist organization by many countries, and the Philippine government has refused to negotiate with the Abu Sayyaf as it has done with other nationalist groups such as the MNLF and MILF, and portrays the Abu Sayyaf as nothing more than a band of criminals posing as revolutionaries fighting for an Islamic state.
2 - Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters
The Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters or BIFF was formerly a faction of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, or MILF - that broke away in 2008 in opposition to the MILF’s ending its struggle for Moro independence and agreeing to the Philippine government’s offer of autonomy. The BIFF seeks to establish an independent Muslim state in Mindanao and Sulu - and engages government forces in gun battles and carries out violent acts against civilians. In 2014, the BIFF declared allegiance to ISIS, although the latter has not issued a response.
3 - Maute Group
The Maute Group, self-styled as the “Islamic State of Lanao”, is another Moro jihadist group that broke away in 2012 from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, or MILF, and is led by the Maute family of Lanao del Sur. In 2015, the Maute Group pledged allegiance to ISIS and established ties with the Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiyah, the latter an Indonesia-based terrorist group.
The Maute Group engages government forces in gun battles and also conducts terrorist acts, including the failed bomb plot near the U.S. Embassy in Manila in November 2016. More prominent was Maute’s involvement, together with the Abu Sayyaf and other armed groups, in the Siege of Marawi, a five-month long battle with government forces where all seven Maute brothers were killed. In the aftermath, the Maute Group experienced a decline, but is more recently believed to be in the process of rebuilding the organization.
4 - Ansar Khalifa Philippines
Ansar Khalifa, the group’s name derived from the Arabic meaning “Supporters of the Caliphate”, Philippines, is another radical Islamist militia that was formed in 2008 by a former member of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, or MILF. It has strong ties to and gets funding from other militant groups in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Syria, and in 2014, it pledged allegiance to ISIS. Ansar Khalifa’s terrorist actions include kidnap-for-ransom operations and grenade attacks. As well, it was one of four rebel groups, the others being the Abu Sayyaf, BIFF, and Maute Group, that was involved in the Siege of Marawi in 2017. More recently, it has been weakened by the Philippine military’s total war strategy against terrorism.

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