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| Southeast Asia |
| Manila police warn of market bombing after blasts |
| 2005-02-16 |
| Philippine police issued a warning on Wednesday of plots to bomb crowded public markets in Manila, two days after three coordinated blasts killed 11 people in the capital's business district and two southern cities. Police were also checking reports a 10-year-old boy was used to sneak a bag with explosives past security at a bus terminal in Davao on Monday evening. Witnesses said a man then collected the bag and planted the bomb that killed another boy, aged 12. "We've picked up intelligence two days ago about plots to bomb several public markets in Metro Manila," Avelino Razon, the capital's police chief, told reporters. "We can't disregard this information." President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo vowed on Tuesday to "wipe out" Abu Sayyaf, a small Muslim rebel group linked to al Qaeda that claimed the three explosions in crowded public places on Valentine's Day. Arroyo made similar war cries a year ago after more than 100 people were killed when a bomb planted by Abu Sayyaf sank a ferry at the mouth of Manila Bay. Nearly 5,000 troops have been in fierce fighting with about 800 Abu Sayyaf rebels and rogue members of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) on the remote southern island of Jolo since Feb. 7, when the militants ambushed an army convoy. The MNLF signed a peace deal with the government of the mainly Roman Catholic country in 1996, but some disaffected members formed alliances with Abu Sayyaf. Brigadier-General Agustin Dema-ala, the military commander on Jolo, told reporters 70 to 100 rebels had been killed in nine days of clashes. Nearly 30 soldiers were dead, he said. The rebels claim they attacked the troops in retaliation for the killing of a Muslim family during military operations. A senior Abu Sayyaf leader said his group had carried out Monday's bombings, but army and police intelligence officials say they are also exploring a possible role by Jemaah Islamiah, a shadowy regional network of militants associated with al Qaeda. "We cannot accept the Abu Sayyaf's claim hook, line and sinker," Edgardo Aglipay, the national police chief, said on Tuesday. "We want our findings to be backed by evidence." Investigators said two of the bombs had been remotely detonated, using mobile phones. Fragments of C-4 explosive, dynamite and an 81mm mortar shell were among the materials used, they said. Two teams of forensic experts from the Australian police are due to arrive this week to help the investigation, looking for any similarities with previous attacks in the region by Jemaah Islamiah, particularly in neighbouring Indonesia. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |