The local Moros are feared by their neighbors as being wild, violent, and fearless. They have a long reputation of being incredibly brutal, amongs themselves and others, even before the introduction of Islam. Kidnapping women to serve as spouses has not been eradicated, although outright slavery has been. They think very little about killing for an offense, especially with machete like knives called 'kris'. They are known in the region as pirates, slavers, and thugs.
The Armed Forces of the Philippeans, composed mainly of the friendly, peaceful northerners, are outright terrified of them. Duty in the Sulu archipelago is dreaded and avoided. Their main concern is to stay alive, catching terrorists is a dim second.
I spent about 5 years in the Phillipines while I was active duty.
There was always a special relationship between the Moros and the Communist New peoples Army durign the long duration Civil war in the Phillipines. The Moros of this generation cut their teeth in communist style insurgency warfare with the Phillipine Army over about 40 years of the last century.
When the civil war ended, the NPA blended into the Phillipines population and is now the leading voice of the whiners who want America out of the Phillipines.
The Moros blended into the jungle and began to start their conquest of the Phillipines as an Islamic Republic.
Now, in this war, we have the marxists and the muslim insurgents aligning again. Its gonna be a long, twisted road rooting them out of there, but it can be done.