By Reuters  September 3, 2018 | 10:30 am GMT+7 A bomb blast killed one person and injured 15 in an internet cafe in the southern Philippines on Sunday. This is the second such attack in days blamed by the military on pro-Islamic State militants. Isulan, a mostly Christian city on southern Mindanao island, was placed on lockdown to hunt down those behind the attack, Brigadier General Cirilito Sobejana, an army division commander, told reporters. No group claimed responsibility. “Most likely it’s still the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF),” the commander said. “There is no other group who would dare to carry out the bombing and there is no other group with an interest to bomb without any reason.” The BIFF were also blamed for a blast on Tuesday about 500 meters away which killed three people and wounded more than 30. Mindanao has a large Muslim minority. The BIFF is a breakaway faction of a Muslim separatist group which … [Read more...] about Bomb kills one and injures 15 in cafe in southern Philippines
Philippines
Bomb in southern Philippines claims at least one live
The explosion takes place in front of a restaurant on a highway in Isulan in Sultan Kudarat, the Philippines. (Photo: Rappler) Hanoi (VNA) - At least one person was killed and more than 30 others were wounded as a homemade bomb hidden under a motorcycle exploded at a local street festival in the southern Philippines August 28 night. The explosion took place in front of a restaurant on a highway in Isulan in Sultan Kudarat province. Victims of the explosion were rushed to a near hospital. An initial investigation is underway and there were no suspects or immediate claims of responsibility, according to police. The incident came a month after a bomb was detonated in a van that was stopped at a military checkpoint on the island of Basilan which killed 11 people, including four civilians. The self-proclaimed Islamic State group claimed responsibility. Sultan Kudarat province is on the Philippines' second-largest island, Mindanao. The island Mindanao remains under martial law until … [Read more...] about Bomb in southern Philippines claims at least one live
Bombing at Philippine street festival leaves one dead, wounds 35: officials
The explosion took place in front of a restaurant at a local street festival on a highway in Isulan in Sultan Kudarat province in the southern Philippines, police and the army said, the latest unrest in a region prone to militancy. An initial investigation was underway and there were no suspects or immediate claims of responsibility, police said. The province is on the Philippines’ second-largest island, Mindanao, parts of which have been plagued by decades of Maoist and Islamist rebellions that have given rise to banditry and extremism. Mindanao remains under martial law until the end of the year. According to initial reports, one person was killed, one critically injured and 34 others wounded, said provincial police chief, Noel Kinazo. Radio station DZRH reported multiple fatalities. The incident comes a month after a bomb was detonated in a van that was stopped at a military checkpoint on the island of Basilan which killed 11 people, including four civilians. Islamic State … [Read more...] about Bombing at Philippine street festival leaves one dead, wounds 35: officials
One killed, dozens wounded in Philippines bombing
A bomb blast tore through a crowd at a festival in the southern Philippines on Tuesday, killing one person and wounding dozens more in the second deadly attack in under a month in the region, authorities said. This photo taken on Aug 28, 2011 shows members of the breakaway Muslim separatist group Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) at Camp Omar, in the town of Datu Unsay in Maguindanao province on the southern Philippine island of Mindanao. (AFP PHOTO/TED ALJIBE) The powerful bomb in the town of Isulan went off near a night market that was part of local celebrations, sending people running in terror. "It was loud, we immediately left the area but I can't forget the images of a young girl carried by her father, her shirt covered in blood," said witness Judy Sapto, an area resident. The attack, claimed by the Islamic State group, is the latest violence in the south of the majority Catholic archipelago, where Islamist militants have been fighting a decades-long insurgency. … [Read more...] about One killed, dozens wounded in Philippines bombing
Vietnamese, Philippine ruling parties foster cooperation
At the signing ceremony of a memorandum of understanding on cooperation between the CPV and PDP-Laban (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – Politburo member and standing member of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee’s Secretariat Tran Quoc Vuong had a meeting in Hanoi on August 27 with a visiting delegation of the Philippine Democratic Party-Power of the Nation (PDP-Laban), led by its Vice President Alfonso Gaba Cusi. At the meeting, Vuong lauded the PDP-Laban delegation’s visit, describing it as an important milestone in cooperative relations between the ruling parties of Vietnam and the Philippines. He spoke highly of the outcomes of talks and meetings between the delegation and relevant agencies of Vietnam, suggesting that in the future, the CPV and PDP-Laban will effectively realise signed agreements, thus helping to strengthen political trust and create stronger motivation for the development of the Vietnam-Philippines strategic partnership. Vuong and … [Read more...] about Vietnamese, Philippine ruling parties foster cooperation