Local people have been desperately trying to leave the area with whatever possessions they can carry. They have fled in vehicles and on foot. Traffic is gridlocked on the main roads in and out of Marawi, with overcrowded vehicles facing long queues at police checkpoints at the entrance of Iligan City, about 38km away. Imposing martial law in the south on Tuesday, the Philippine president, Rodrigo Duterte warned it would be ‘harsh’, like a dictatorship. Duterte, who has threatened to extend martial law across the country, has accused foreign fighters of infiltrating local rebel groups

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