7 Killed, Dozens Injured In South RP Bombings

GENERAL SANTOS CITY (Mindanao Examiner / 11 Jan) – Philippine authorities tightened security Thursday in the southern region of Mindanao following a spate of bombings that killed at least 7 people and wounded dozens more.

Six people had died and at least 33 others injured, many seriously in Wednesday bombing of a lottery shop in General Santos City at around 6.45 p.m., according to local police chief Senior Superintendent Alfredo Toroctocon.

“We are still investigating the attack. Our SOCO (scenes of crime officer) team is in the area investigating the blast,” Toroctocon said on Thursday.

Another blast hit Kidapawan City at around 8.45 p.m. Wednesday and wounded two people.

Authorities said an improvised bomb exploded near a garbage pit in Cotabato City in Maguindanao province, west of Kidapawan, at around 10.45 p.m. Most of the wounded were scavengers.

Security forces scrambled to stop the spate of terror attacks in Mindanao island. No groups claimed responsibility for all the attacks blamed by authorities on terror groups in the troubled Mindanao region.

Police and military suspect the blast in General Santos City was the handiwork of the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf group, the Jemaah Islamiya and the rouge members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, the country’s largest Muslim rebel group fighting for independence in the south.

Authorities did not say what type of bomb was used in the attacks which coincided with the opening of the 12th ASEAN Summit in Cebu island in the central Philippines.

Australia earlier warned its citizens of a possible bomb attack in the Philippines, but Filipino authorities downplayed the report fearing it would affect or scare the summit leaders.

“We advise you to exercise a high degree of caution in the Philippines because of the high threat of terrorist attack. We continue to receive credible reports that terrorists are planning attacks against a range of targets, including places frequented by foreigners.”

“Some reports suggest that terrorists could target sites in Metro Manila, Mindanao including the Sulu Archipelago, and Cebu Province. If you do decide to travel, you should exercise extreme caution when you are in the Philippines,” it said.(Mindanao Examiner)