Video courtesy of Associated Press (AP)

The military now has a video of Abu Sayyaf leader Isnilon Hapilon, purportedly the emir of the Islamic State in Southeast Asia, plotting the Marawi siege which broke out on May 23, 2017.

Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief of staff Eduardo Año confirmed it is Hapilon in the video. He is the man seated at the center of the table wearing a head scarf.

Año said the video shows how the bandits plotted to control Marawi City by blocking and occupying roads, as well as laying siege to a school and other structures.

"That video actually is a clear proof that the group of Maute, ISIS, has this intention of not only rebellion but actually dismembering a portion of the Philippine territory by occupying the whole of Marawi City and establishing their own Islamic State or government," Año said.

Año added that the terrorists originally planned to attack Marawi City on May 26 at the start of Ramadan, but had to move it to an earlier date due to the military's attempt to neutralize Hapilon.

The military said they discovered the video in a mobile phone seized during a May 23 raid of a Marawi safehouse.

The news agency Associated Press (AP) was given access to the video and allowed to copy it. ABS-CBN is an AP subscriber.

Click here for the full AP story: AP Exclusive: Video shows militants in Philippine siege plot

-with a report from Miguel Dumaual, ABS-CBN News