Fighting between government-backed separatist rebels and pro-Daesh militants has killed at least 25 people in the southern Philippines, the army said on Monday, as the military battles to restore order on the troubled island of Mindanao, Voice of America reported.
Soldiers provided artillery support for the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), a Muslim rebel group with which the government has signed a peace agreement, to try to tackle Daesh extremists, spokesman Colonel Gerry Besana said.
The MILF and the government have agreed to work together to thwart several militant groups in Mindanao that have pledged allegiance to Daesh.
The island of 22 million people and roughly the size of South Korea is under martial law at least until the end of the year, as President Rodrigo Duterte tries to extinguish a growing threat of extremists taking a hold and turning the southern Philippines into a magnet for foreign extremists.
The MILF is opposed to radical groups and sees them as undermining its legitimate quest for greater autonomy for Muslims in parts of Mindanao, to end nearly 50 years of conflict that has killed more than 120,000 people and displaced 2 million.
"Based on reports from cease-fire monitors, the two sides suffered 25 casualties, including 20 from the Daesh-inspired group," Besana said.

Source: Mena