MARAWI CITY, 29 June 2006 — War is hell but it could also be beneficial if waged the right way.

That is happening now in some parts of the southern Philippines, where a joint effort by US and Philippine troops to battle extremists through civic action is getting appreciated by the target — the Muslim population.

“They are kind; they gave us medicines and told us to take care of our health. We hope they come more often and help the Muslims here,” said fisherman Kani Abdurahim, one of the latest to benefit from Project Bayanihan, the humanitarian component of the Balikatan military exercises between the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the US military.

Officials said at least 1,500 residents of poor Muslim villages flocked yesterday to the city of Marawi where they received free medical consultation and treatment from American and Filipino military doctors.

Dentists and dozens of volunteer health workers also helped in the medical mission, the 16th since last year by the group.

“We are so happy to help many poor Filipinos and we hope to do more in the future,” Lt. Dave Nava, of the US Joint Special Operations Task Force-Philippines (JSOTF-P), told Arab News.

Project Bayanihan also involves the Philippine National Police and local government units and nongovernmental organizations, according to Nava.

At least 11 doctors from the provincial health office plus four from the JSOTF-P and US Navy Destroyer USS Momsen led the Marawi medical mission.

Since its launch last year, Project Bayanihan has served more than 10,000 poor Filipinos in the Central Mindanao, officials said.

The number is in addition to more than 60,000 people served by the US Navy hospital ship Mercy last month in Zamboanga City and the islands of Basilan, Jolo and Tawi-Tawi as part of Project Bayanihan.

Australian and Philippine officials agreed yesterday that extremists allied with the Al-Qaeda and Jemaah Islamiyah remained active in the the southern Philippines despite an intensified US-backed military campaign since 2002.

Delegates at a two-day counterterrorism meeting in Manila discussed how to crush the group and its allies by cutting their financial network, tightly securing borders and ports, improving legal tools to prosecute militants and addressing the roots of unrest. They also assessed current threats.

Local Muslim leaders have asked the US and Philippine governments to continue with the humanitarian campaign if they want to really win the “hearts and minds” of the Muslim population.

They noted that the local folks are tired of war and they deserve to be given better health and education services along with economic opportunities.