President Rodrigo Duterte has said martial law on Mindanao island could be extended across the Philippines, while the army fi ghts Islamist militants. Mr Duterte said insurgents had beheaded a policeman on the southern island. At least three other members of the security forces are reported dead. On Tuesday he imposed martial law on Mindanao, where Muslim separatists and other rebels are fi ghting the army. Some of the groups have pledged support for so-called Islamic State (IS). Th ousands of people have been fl eeing fi ghting in the city of Marawi after gunmen rampaged through the city.
“I will not hesitate to do anything and everything to protect and preserve the Filipino nation,” the president said. “I might declare martial law throughout the country to protect the people.” President Duterte, a Mindanao native, said the police chief of Malabang on Mindanao had been stopped on his way home “at a checkpoint manned by terrorists and I think they decapitated them right there and then”.
As he imposed 60 days of martial lawon the island on Tuesday, he warned he would be harsh in dealing with terrorism. “If it takes a year to do it, then we’ll do it. If it’s over within a month, then I would be happy,” he said in a video posted online by the government. Mr Duterte cut short his visit to Russia to deal with the violence. During his talks in Moscow with Russian President Vladimir Putin, he also said the Philippines needed more modern weapons to fi ght IS militants and other militant groups. Martial law allows the use of the military to enforce order and the detention of people without charge for long periods. Th e Philippine constitution says a president can only declare martial law for 60 days to stop an invasion or a rebellion
