As Battle With ISIS Continues, Philippine Military Asks Facebook to Close Jihadis' Accounts
The Philippine Army has requested for Facebook to take down dozens of accounts suspected to be linked with the Islamist militants allied to the Islamic State who overran a city in the southern island of Mindanao. The military headquarters has coordinated with the social media site's office in Manila.
Military spokesman Lt. Col. Jo-ar Herrera said on Friday that they uncovered at least 63 Facebook accounts which belong to the terrorists and their sympathizers. "These 63 accounts are spreading malicious operations that affect the information landscape and the mindset of every Filipino," he said.
The military lamented on how quickly Islamist propaganda videos spread online. One video, for example, showed the terrorists firing rocket-propelled grenades at army tanks. Herrera admitted that the army lost control of the tanks, but it doesn't mean the military is losing the war.
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Herrera added that the dummy accounts have affected the information landscape and the mindset of Filipinos. "These Facebook accounts have twisted the truth and twisted the real situation," he said. "They are spreading lies and misinformation. They are creating more problems in our fight versus local terrorist groups," Herrera went on to say.
Facebook issued a statement to the military, saying it wants to provide a service where people feel safe through its community standards that do not allow groups or people that engage in terrorist activity or posts that express support for terrorism. It added that it prohibits dummy accounts.
Meanwhile, the Philippine military confirmed that the United States is providing technical assistance to end the siege in Marawi. On Friday, a U.S. Navy P3 Orion surveillance plane flew over Marawi to provide surveillance to Filipino soldiers flushing the terrorists.
The U.S. Embassy also confirmed the information. "The United States is a proud ally of the Philippines and we will continue to work with the Philippines to address shared threats to the peace and security of our countries, including on counterterrorism issues," it said in a statement.
