1 die and 37 hurt in bomb blast
Print Edition
ONE person was killed and 37 injured yesterday when a suspected bomb exploded outside a bus depot in the southern Philippine port of Zamboanga, the city mayor said.
Mayor Maria Isabelle Climaco told ABS-CBN television by telephone that local authorities suspected the al-Qaeda-linked armed group Abu Sayyaf was behind the attack.
She said the explosion may be part of a plot by the Abu Sayyaf, which has been blamed for the deadliest bombings to hit the Philippines, to break 57 of their comrades out of the Zamboanga city jail.
“We have received notices (from the intelligence community) that they are going to be rescued by their comrades, who are ready to die,” Climaco said.
The Abu Sayyaf, a loose band of a few hundred militants founded with seed money from Al Qaeda, has been blamed for the worst terror attacks in Philippine history.
These have included the bombing of a ferry in Manila in 2004 in which over 100 people died, and repeated kidnappings of foreigners in the southern Philippines who are usually ransomed off for huge amounts.
The blast tore through a vehicle parked near a bus terminal and “left a crater” beneath it, Climaco said, adding that she had asked the justice department to transfer the “high-value” prisoners outside the city.
Many foreign governments warn their citizens against travelling to the southern Philippine areas, including Zamboanga, which are regarded as strongholds for the Abu Sayyaf and other Islamic militants.
The Abu Sayyaf claims it is fighting to establish an independent Islamic homeland in the Muslim populated south of the mainly Catholic Philippines.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
