section_path: Presidency (2016–2022)/Domestic policy/Campaign against terrorism
section_name: Campaign against terrorism
paragraph_text: Campaign against terrorism
  
  At the start of 2016, experts warned the Philippines was at risk of having the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) set a foothold in the country. However, Duterte's predecessor, President Aquino III, dismissed the perpetrators of a March 2016 armed attack against the military as mere "mercenaries" wanting to join the ISIS. The earliest terrorist attacks in Duterte's presidency occurred in September 2016 in Davao City; November 2016 in Butig, Lanao del Sur; and in April to May 2017 in Inabanga, Bohol, where the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) attempted to establish a position in the Visayas. Though the military eventually quelled the sieges, the events were only a prelude to what would become Duterte's greatest challenge in combating terrorism.
  
  On May 23, 2017, Duterte was in his first state visit to Russia, where he met Russian president Vladimir Putin to realign the Philippines's foreign policy away from the United States; among his top priorities in the trip included the acquisition of Russian-made munitions to use against Islamic militants in restive Mindanao. At that time, the Philippine military was in an operation to capture ASG leader Isnilon Hapilon. Duterte cut short his trip and flew back to the Philippines after the Maute Group, which pledged allegiance to the ISIS, occupied the city of Marawi in Lanao del Sur. Upon returning, Duterte declared Martial law across Mindanao and ordered a major offensive on the city to retake it. The battle, which lasted for five months, became the country's longest urban warfare; the city, particularly the downtown area, was left in ruins, largely due to militant fire and military airstrikes, necessitating rehabilitation. Hapilon and Omar Maute were eventually killed, and on October 17, Duterte declared the city liberated from terrorist influence.
  
  Citing the danger posed by Islamic terrorists, Congress, upon Duterte's requests, thrice granted the extension of martial law in Mindanao between 2017 and 2019. The moves drew criticism, particularly from rights groups, who claimed that the extensions were part of a campaign on stifling dissent. By the end of 2019, martial law in Mindanao lapsed, after which Duterte decided not to have it extended. In July 2020, Duterte signed the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020, which expanded the powers of the government to address the country's growing security challenges. In its enactment, the law repealed the Human Security Act of 2007, which was described by the 2020 law's proponents as weak and inadequate.: 54–55 However, the 2020 law received intense criticism, notably from the academia and rights groups, for allegedly being prone to abuse; a total of 37 petitions were filed by several groups asking the Supreme Court to have the law nullified,: 60 making the law the most assailed legislation in Philippine history; the Court ultimately upheld the validity of the law in December 2021, but struck two of the law's provisions.
  
  As Duterte's term approached its end, the military intensified its efforts against Islamic terrorists, which continued to carry a series of attacks in Mindanao and Sulu; notable among these attacks involved suicide bombing, a tactic not commonly used by Filipino terrorists.: 55 In February 2021, Duterte created the National Amnesty Commission, which would process amnesty applications of former rebels and determine their eligibility. Additionally, he expanded his administration's reintegration program to include former violent extremists. From 2016 to 2021, 1,544 ASG members, 971 Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters members, and 1,427 Dawlah Islamiyah members were reportedly captured, killed, or surrendered.