(Eagle News) — Abdullah Maute is dead.
“(He) is already killed. Chatter over Telegram indicates he is killed,” Lieutenant General Carlito Galvez, chief of the Western Mindanao Command, said in a press conference in Marawi City on Monday, September 4.
He was referring to the application the Maute group reportedly used to communicate with the Islamic State, the international terrorist group to which they pledged allegiance.
Galvez said the military translated some messages in Arabic.
According to Galvez, Maute’s brother Omar, however, appeared to be still alive.
Earlier, the military said Omar was likely dead.
“He’s wounded but still inside,” said Galvez.
The military official noted that the clashes in Marawi were nearing the end, as the battle area was now confined to only 20 to 24 hectares.
The Maute brothers are believed to be behind the May 23 attack in Marawi, which prompted President Rodrigo Duterte to declare martial law across Mindanao.