Manila  - Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo said Monday the military's offensives against Muslim separatist rebels in the south, which have displaced more than 270,000 civilians, would help remove obstacles to peace talks with the guerrillas.

Arroyo stressed that her government has not declared an all-out war against the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), military operations were only targeted against those commanders and members who launched a spate of deadly attacks this month.

"The targeted lawless groups are historically the recalcitrant commands," she said. "They are the ones that have been creating trouble before and during the proceedings of the peace process, and they are likely the ones to create problems even after a final agreement would be forged between the government and the MILF."

"So the campaign against them is intended to remove the obstacles to the peace process," she added.

The MILF is the largest Muslim rebel group fighting for an independent Islamic state in the southern region of Mindanao.

The hostilities erupted after the Supreme Court on August 4 blocked the signing of a territorial deal between the MILF and the government that would have expanded an existing autonomous Muslim region in Mindanao.

The Philippine military said it was gaining ground against MILF rebels who illegally occupied towns, burned homes, ransacked businesses and government offices, and ambushed private vehicles in several provinces since the aborted deal signing.

The rebel attacks and ensuing firefights with the military killed 102 people, including civilians slain by the guerrillas, officials said.

"We have observed that resistance from the MILF has lessened, very much less than the resistance that we encountered in the first two days," said General Alexander Yano, armed forces chief of staff. "There are sporadic harassments but these are very much less than before."

Yano added that troops have been able to clear several communities and positions of MILF rebels.

The military said at least 100 MILF rebels have been killed in the offensives since last week. (dpa)