(From Reuters)
The Philippines faces a growing risk of a Paris-style attack by foreign militants, the top contender to win elections next year has warned, but there is no threat of “World War Three” with China over a bitter South China Sea territorial dispute.
Rodrigo Duterte, a tough-talking mayor of Davao City in the insurgency-plagued south, has built a reputation for fighting crime. He told Reuters two new army divisions would be formed to tackle security threats if he replaces President Benigno Aquino in the election in May.
His views run contrary to Aquino’s government, which sees no links between Islamic State militants and five Islamist groups in the southern Philippines – even though police have said the groups had pledged allegiance to extremists in Syria and Iraq. Read More