A DAWLAH Islamiya fighter has surrendered to the government troops in Lanao del Sur, a top military official said Tuesday, March 17.
Lieutenant General Cirilito Sobejana, Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom) chief, identified the Dawlah Islamiya surrenderer as Bokharie Macadato Mahmod.
Sobejana, who surrendered Monday in Pagalongan Village, Sultan Dumalondong, has turned over one Carbine rifle, one caliber .45 pistol, magazines, and ammunition.
Mahmod surrendered to Lieutenant Colonel Benjamin Tapnio, Army’s 49th Infantry Battalion commander. The troops, along with Sultan Dumalondong Mayor Jamal Kurangking and Lumbayanague Mayor Salamona Asum, facilitated his surrender.
Sobejana said Mahmod was recruited into the Dawlah Islamiya terror group by alias Commander Inspire, a sub-leader of the group.
He said Mahmod is a close associate of Dawlah Islamiyah fighter Emir, alias Abu Dar, and has fought against the government troops during their deliberate operations in Butig, Lanao del Sur and Marawi City, the province’s capital, in 2016 and 2017, respectively.
The Westmincom chief said after five months of fighting in 2017, Mahmod escaped from the main battle area of Marawi City by swimming across Lake Lanao.
“We want to dissuade more combatants from fighting and risking their lives on battlefields. We want this message to reach even those hardcore terrorists because our reformative program includes every rebel desiring a renewed life,” Sobejana said.
He urged other members of the Dawlah Islamiya to surrender and join the government’s security and development campaign “by crossing the line and returning to the fold of the law.” (SunStar Zamboanga)