On 07 October 2012 it was announced that the Philippine government had reached a preliminary peace agreement with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, the country’s largest Muslim rebel group, to end the four decade long insurgency that had killed more than 120,000 people. Under the agreement, a new political entity will be created in Mindanao, in the the southwestern of the Philippines, where there is a Muslim majority. The new entity will be authorized to raise its own sources of revenue and to levy taxes. The civil court system in the area will be improved, while the Shari’ah justice system for Muslims will be expanded. The national government retains jurisdiction over defense and security, foreign policy, monetary policy and coinage, citizenship and naturalization and the postal system.