By Kanupriya Kapoor MARAWI CITY, Philippines (Reuters) - Civilians held hostage by Islamist militants occupying a southern Philippine city have been forced to loot homes, take up arms against government troops and serve as sex slaves for rebel fighters, the army said on Tuesday. Citing accounts of seven residents of Marawi City who either escaped or were rescued, the military said some hostages were forced to convert to Islam, carry wounded fighters to mosques, and marry militants of the Maute group loyal to Islamic State. Some escapees say bodies of residents have been left in the streets, some for weeks, and civilians are distressed by government air strikes and artillery bombardments that have reduced parts of Marawi to rubble.
A small border town and some of the largest cities in Texas told a federal judge on Monday a new state law aimed at punishing sanctuary cities could lead to an immigration police state and asked him to halt it because it was unconstitutional. The Republican-backed law in Texas, the U.S. state with the longest border with Mexico, takes effect on September 1. It is the first of its kind since Republican Donald Trump became president in January, promising to crack down on illegal immigration.
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