Six people wounded in bus explosion in Mindanao

KIDAPAWAN CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Apr. 04, 2009) – A powerful explosion on Saturday ripped through a commuter bus in Koronadal City in the restive region of the southern Philippines, wounding at least 6 people, police said.

Police said the explosion damaged the bus owned by Husky Transit while it was picking up passengers at a terminal in Koronadal City in South Cotabato. The bus was enroute to General Santos City when the explosion occurred at around 10.30 a.m.

“Police forces headed by Superintendent Froilan Quidilla have secured the area. Six people are injured in the explosion. Police is still investigating the blast,” said police desk officer John Paul Deliso.

No group or individual claimed responsibility for the explosion, but the attack occurred three days after police announced they captured Manuel Guevarra, a member of the extortion syndicate called the Al-Khobar gang, blamed for the spate of bombings in Mindanao.

It said Guevarra was behind the string of attacks the past years in Mindanao that killed and wounded dozens of civilians, including a bombing last month the left 9 people wounded in Kidapawan City in North Cotabato province.

The Army’s 6th Infantry Division had previously linked the larger Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) to the spate of bombings on buses and civilian targets in the troubled region of Mindanao.

Former rebels are also known to work as criminals in large parts of Mindanao, demanding illegal taxation or money from bus operators and other businesses in exchange for protection from bomb and other attacks.

The MILF, which is fighting for independence, denied all allegations and blamed the attacks on other rebel groups such as the Abu Sayyaf and the Al-Khobar. (With a report from Geo Solmerano)

Bomb explodes in Mindanao bus terminal

COTABATO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Mar. 22, 2009) - An improvised bomb exploded before dawn Sunday at a commuter bus depot in the southern Philippines, officials said.

Officials said the explosion occurred at around 2.45 a.m. in Cotabato City. There were no reports of civilian casualties but two buses, owned by Husky, were slightly damaged from the blast, said Lt. Col. Jonathan Ponce, a spokesman for the Army’s 6th Infantry Division.

Ponce quickly blamed the attack to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels who were allegedly extorting money from the bus firm.

“The motive of the attack is extortion by the MILF-SOG,” he said, referring to the so-called Special Operations Group, a unit of the rebel group.

But police investigators were eyeing business rivalry in the blast. The MILF denied the accusation and said it has nothing to do with the attack.

“Why blame us for everything that is happening in Mindanao, we have nothing to do with it. We are not terrorists,” said Eid Kabalu, a senior MILF leader. (Mindanao Examiner)