Militants in southern Philippines join forces to form ISIS satellite

Four Islamic extremist groups have reportedly merged to form a satellite extension of ISIS. A video posted to an extremist-run website on 4th January shows militants carrying ISIS flags with the commanders of the four groups pledging allegiance to ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Previously, the groups have singularly pledged support for ISIS, but this is the first time that they have joined forces. The nature of these groups has long been questioned, with some observers arguing that they use an ideological front to cover a criminal agenda, which has involved kidnap for ransom. The consolidation of forces is however of concern, given the lawless nature of the region, which borders Malaysia. Speaking about the development, Rohan Gunaratna, terrorism expert at the International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research in Singapore said: “With the proclamation of an Islamic State branch in the southern Philippines, the IS influence is likely to grow, affecting both the southern Philippines and eastern Malaysia…Islamic State is likely to create a safe haven in Basilan and mount operations from the Sulu archipelago into both the Philippines and Malaysia.”

Bangkok: Four Islamic terrorist groups in the southern Philippines have merged to form a satellite extension of Islamic State, according to a video posted on a jihad website.

The video purports to show militants carrying IS flags and the heavily armed commanders of the groups that had declared their allegiance to IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

The groups have, in the past, separately claimed support for IS, but the video suggests they might have agreed to consolidate their forces, creating an even more potent threat from the lawless island region bordering Malaysia.