Plano ng Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) na makipag-ugnayan sa Indonesia tungkol sa report ng isang opisyal nito na nagsasabing may 1,200 miyembro ng Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) sa bansa matapos na ikagulat ng militar ang nabanggit na report.

“This needs to be subjected to inquiry on the other side, kung saan nakuha ng Indonesia so we may address this because we have networks with the nations who are fighting against terrorism,” sinabi ni AFP spokesman Brig. Gen. Restituto Padilla sa ‘Mindanao Hour’ briefing sa Malacañang.

“We will reach out, we will inquire, the possible sources of this information and how they may have come across it because for all we know, this may prove helpful in our campaign against all these terrorists or these criminals,” dagdag ni Padilla.

Matatandaang sinabi ni Indonesian Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu sa isang forum sa Singapore na may 1,200 tauhan ng ISIS sa Pilipinas, kabilang na ang 40 mula sa Indonesia, sa kasagsagan ng tuluy-tuloy na bakbakan sa Marawi City, Lanao del Sur. Nanawagan ang opisyal ng mas pinaigting na ugnayan sa Southeast Asia laban sa mga terorista.

“The revelations of the Indonesian Defense Minister is something that came as a surprise to us because as was mentioned by senior defense officials, in truth, we don’t have those numbers,” pag-amin ni Padilla.

44°C heat index, naitala sa 4 na lugar sa Luzon!

Hinimok naman kahapon ni Senator Sonny Angara ang Department of National Defense (DND) na kumpirmahin ang katotohanan sa likod ng nasabing report.

“Well, I think (Defense) Sec. (Delfin) Lorenzana said he has no information on that but its something we need to (look into),” sabi ni Angara. “It’s a lead that we need to follow. Whether its our intelligence agencies or defense establishments, it’s a cause for concern.”

“That is why we shouldn’t be dismissing such allegations. It should be investigated,” anang senador.

(GENALYN D. KABILING at HANNAH L. TORREGOZA)