Extort Gang Eyed In Mindanao Blast

COTABATO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / May 19, 2008) – The Philippine military on Tuesday tagged a criminal syndicate as behind a new bomb attack on a commuter bus in the southern city of Cotabato.

The bombing injured three people late Monday and security officials tagged the Al-Khobar gang, an affiliate of the notorious Abu Sayyaf, also blamed for past attacks in the troubled region of Mindanao.

“Initial reports suggested the bombing was perpetrated by the Al-Khobar which has been linked to previous attacks on commuter buses in Mindanao,” Major Julieto Ando, spokesman for the Army’s 6th Infantry Division, told the Mindanao Examiner.

He said three people were injured the bombing that damaged a bus owned by the Weena Transit. No one claimed responsibility for the attack.

Cotabato City, rocked by past bombings, kidnappings and killings has been previously tagged by Western countries as a dangerous place for foreigners because of the presence of terrorists.

Earlier this month, a bomb attack on a bus depot also wounded at least eight people in the town of Midsayap in North Cotabato. Although no groups claimed responsibility for the blast, authorities have linked the Al-Khobar and the Abu Sayyaf in the attack.

Last month, a homemade bomb exploded in Midsayap, damaging a bus also owned by Weena Transit. The explosive, assembled from a mortar round, was left near at the parked bus. (With reports from Mark Navales)

Fire Hits Slum In South RP

Fire fighters battle flames Thursday Nov. 01, 2007 in Cotabato City in southern Philippines.

(Mark Navales/Mindanao Examiner Photo Service)

COTABATO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Nov. 01, 2007) – A fire broke out Thursday at a slum area in Cotabato City in southern Philippines, but there were no immediate reports of casualties or injuries, officials said.

The fire left hundreds of people homeless. Arson investigators said the fire swept through the neighborhood which was once a cemetery.

It was unknown if the fire was deliberate or accidental. (Mark Navales)

RP Troops Hunt Escaped Bomber, 3 Others In Troubled South

Prison officials inspect the compound of the Maguindanao provincial jail on Sunday, 10 December 2006, after gunmen storm the facility, springing a Moro rebel linked by RP authoritiies to an airport bomb attack in 2003 in Awang town. One jail guard is wounded in the raid. (Mindanao Examiner/Mark Navales)

COTABATO CITY (Juan Magtanggol / 10 Dec) - Philippine authorities tightened security on Sunday as troops mounted a massive search for 4 men, one of them a Moro rebel, who escaped from a prison facility in Cotabato City in the troubled southern region, officials said.

Officials said three men, armed with assault weapons, stormed the provincial prison on Saturday afternoon and sprang Badrudin Dalungan, a member of the separatist rebel group, Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), a suspect in the bombing of the Awang airport near Cotabato in 2003.

"Troops are helping police forces track down the four men. They are armed and dangerous and civilians should immediately report to authorities if they see these people," Lt. Col. Julieto Ando, a spokesman for the Army's 6th Infantry Division, told the Mindanao Examiner.

Ando said one prison guard was wounded in the attack.

A rebel spokesman Eid Kabalu has admitted that Dalungan was a member of the MILF, but said the group was unaware of his escape.

He said the MILF is willing to help authorities find Dalungan and negotiate for his surrender. "We are willing to help if the government asks our assistance," he said in a separate interview.

Authorities said one person was killed in the airport bombing that was also blamed by the government to the radical Rajah Solaiman group.

The Philippine military said some MILF commanders allegedly sheltered the Rajah Solaiman militants in Mindanao, but this was denied by the rebel group, which is currently negotiating peace with Manila.

Last year, the chieftain of the Rajah Solaiman group, Ahmed Santos, was arrested in Zamboanga City and authorities linked him to the spate of bombings in Manila and Mindanao. Santos denied all the charges. (With a report from Mark Navales/Mindanao Examiner)