An Army explosives investigator examines the damaged portion of a passenger bus following an explosion in Tacurong City in Sultan Kudarat province on Wednesday. Three persons were injured in the blast that police have blamed on an extortion gang in the area. (AP)
ZAMBOANGA (Updated 1 p.m.) -- A Muslim missionary who tipped off authorities about the activities and whereabouts of al-Qaida-linked militants on a southern Philippine island has been found dead and his body mutilated, a military official said Thursday.
The remains, chopped into pieces and put inside a sack, were found Wednesday in the village of Balagtasan in Lamitan township on Basilan island, more than a week after 14 Marines were killed and 10 of them beheaded in an ambush blamed on Muslim rebels.
MANILA -- Malacanang on Wednesday announced that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has accepted the resignation of Energy Secretary Raphael Perpetuo Lotilla, and has replaced him with Environment Secretary Angelo Reyes.
GENERAL SANTOS CITY -- Three people, including a young boy, were wounded when a homemade bomb exploded inside a bus in Tacurong City on Wednesday afternoon.
