IR-EMOP Immediate response to people affected by Armed Conflict in Marawi City

On 23rd May 2017, armed fighting broke out between the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Maute group, a local non-state armed group that has claimed allegiance to the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL/Da’esh), in Marawi City in Lanao del Sur province, Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). On the same day, the President of the Philippines declared martial law in Mindanao and started a military operation. The Philippine government is in control of most of Marawi city but military operations continue as some militants reportedly remain in small parts of the area.

Masses of residents have fled the hostilities in Marawi City, seeking refuge in adjacent municipalities in Lanao del Sur and in Lanao del Norte (Region X), including Iligan City and Cagayan de Oro. 73 percent of an estimated more than 42,000 displaced families are being hosted by relatives or friends; or in government- run evacuation centres. A few thousand families are reported to still be in Marawi. Should the armed fighting continue, it is expected that the number of people displaced will increase.

WFP is launching an Immediate Response Emergency Operation (IR-EMOP) in the areas affected by the armed conflict in Marawi, the provincial capital of Lanao del Sur in the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao, which is located in the southern part of the Philippines. This IR-EMOP is planned to assist some 18,000 school children in Lanao del Sur and other affected areas as well as 6,400 families around the peace/humanitarian corridor, from 15 June to 15 September 2017.