A bomb exploded Sunday at a packed basketball game in the southern Philippines, killing at least eight people and wounding more than 40, including the town mayor. Authorities said he was the likely target of the attack. Police officer Sharifa Irijani said she counted at least 10 bodies when she arrived at the municipal gymnasium in the town of Parang. Scores of people were injured, including the 11-month-old daughter of a policewoman. In Manila, National Police spokesman Senior Supt. Joel Goltiao said at least eight people were confirmed dead and 43 others were wounded, including two police. "The impact was so strong that many were hit by shrapnel and the vehicles outside, including the mayor's car, were heavily damaged," Irijani said in a telephone interview. She said Mayor Vivencio Bataga, who had already survived three attempts on his life, was talking to someone just outside the gym when the blast occurred.
| Somebody get Perv a blanket. He seems to be shivering... |
Although authorities said the bomb was planted on a motorcycle parked in front of the gymnasium, Irijani said many of the victims were hit by shrapnel inside the gymnasium, which had a roof but no walls. Others were hurt in the stampede, she said. Witnesses said the spectators were mostly teenagers. Bloodstains, rubber sandals, T-shirts and twisted metal from vehicles littered the blast site. It was unclear what kind of explosive was used or who was behind the blast.
| Lemme see, here. Southern Philippines. Explosion kills eight. Oh, who could it possibly be? |
Bataga, a tough-talking former army officer, had blamed political rivals or drug syndicates in September for a bomb explosion in front of a local church where he was attending Mass with his family. One of his bodyguards was slightly injured. Unidentified men had earlier fired a rocket-propelled grenade that missed Bataga's vehicle, and in April, a bomb exploded while he was in a public market. Aside from fighting drug dealers in Parang, a predominantly Muslim coastal town 515 miles south of Manila, Bataga is also a vocal critic of Muslim separatist guerrillas in the area.
| "So yez see," said Eid Kabalu, "it wudn't us. They wuz actin' in their capacity as political rivals or drug dealers!" |
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