232 people arrested in Sabah since unrest in Philippine city Marawi

Philippine army troopers stand guard on a deserted street near the front line of the fighting between government troops and Muslim militants in Marawi, on June 25, 2017. PHOTO: AFP

KOTA KINABALU (BERNAMA) - The Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom) has made 232 arrests during operations conducted in the mainland of the Eastern Sabah Security Zone (ESSZone) following unrest in southern Philippine city Marawi .

Chief Minister Musa Aman, who is chairman of Esscom, said the agency had also intensified monitoring and inspections apart from making several off-shore arrests while the curfew was being enforced from May to June.

"The government through Esscom has also made long-term three-way cooperation through the Trilateral Cooperative Agreement (TCA) between the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia in addressing security issues along the border of the three countries.

"Through talks, the three countries have agreed to set up a high-level committee to address security issues at the border, develop an integrated information centre for information sharing, organise periodic training to develop operational capacity and strengthen intelligence cooperation between the countries," he said.

He said this in reply to Mohamad Alamin (BN-Bongawan) in the question-and-answer session at the Sabah State Assembly sitting.

Mohamad had inquired on the short and long-term measures taken by Esscom in dealing with threats posed by foreigners entering the country via the sea following the unrest inMarawi.

Almost 700 people have been killed, according to the official count, in over two months of fighting in Marawi against Islamist militants who have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State i n Iraq and Syria.

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