MANILA, Jan. 9 (Xinhua) — Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said Monday that the brutal and violent ideology of the Islamic State (IS) has reached the Philippines.
"We are now one over the opinion in the cabinet that the IS ideology is here to stay," said the president at a ceremony in the Malacanang Palace.
He said terrorist groups are using illegal drugs to fund their organizations on Mindanao island in the southern Philippines.
Also on Monday, Philippine national police chief Ronald dela Rosa told a news conference that security forces are monitoring the possible presence of five to 10 foreign terrorists in the country.
He said the Philippine authorities have received information that foreign terrorists are training in the Philippines before their deployment in Syria.
Dela Rosa said a foreign man was killed Saturday morning along with his wife during a police operation in Sarangani, Mindanao.
Identified as Abu Naila, the slain suspect was found a Sudanese national and member of jihadist group Ansar Al-Khilafa.
President Duterte confirmed last Nov. 28 that IS militants have connected with a Philippine Islamic group, called Maute, in the southern Philippines.
The armed forces of the Philippines blamed Maute for a series of bombings and robberies in the southern Philippines, including the blast in Davao City that killed 15 people and injured 70 others on Sept. 2, 2016.