Philippines Congress votes to extend martial law until year endJuly 22, 2017 - 15:13 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The Philippine Congress on Saturday, July 22 voted to extend President Rodrigo Duterte's declaration of martial law in the south until the end of the year to defeat Islamist gunmen, AFP reports. In a special joint session of the House and the Senate, legislators overwhelmingly backed Duterte's bid to have martial law remain in force in the Mindanao region until December 31. The vote came as troops continued their two-month long fight to wrest back the southern city of Marawi from Islamic State-inspired militants. Duterte first declared martial law in Mindanao on May 23 shortly after the gunmen, waving the black flags of the IS group, occupied parts of Marawi, triggering weeks of bloody fighting. The vote was largely a foregone conclusion as Duterte enjoy majorities in both houses of Congress. But opposition lawmakers dragged out the debate, questioning why martial law was needed for the whole of Mindanao when the fighting was limited to only one city. "I fear that the plan to extend the martial law in Mindanao will pave the way for a Philippines-wide martial law," said Senator Risa Hontiveros ahead of the vote. A slide presentation accompanying Duterte's request, seen by AFP, compared the Marawi crisis to the Islamic State takeover of the Iraqi city of Mosul. Marawi itself could now become a magnet for foreign fighters in Iraq and Syria, it said. Most of the militants' leaders remain at large, the presentation added, while about 90 of the gunmen have slipped past security cordons and can link up with other armed groups in the region to mount similar widescale attacks. At the hearing, defence and security officials justified the extended martial law, saying that aside from Marawi, Islamist militants were planning attacks in other parts of Mindanao. Photo. Romeo Ranoco/Reuters Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Armenia, Turkey discuss restoration of historic bridge The meeting took place on May 17 in Ashgabat on the sidelines of an international conference of ministers of culture. India wants Armenia’s proposals on use of Chabahar port India is expecting proposals from Armenia regarding the use of Chabahar port in Iran, Indian ambassador says. EU welcomes Armenia-Azerbaijan “progress” The EU has welcomed “progress” made in the framework of the Armenia-Azerbaijan border delimitation process. Belarus opposition leader slams Lukashenko for Karabakh trip Belarusian opposition politician Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya has harshly criticized the visit of Lukashenko to Karabakh. |