Monday, July 07, 2008
Police suspect Muslim militants in foiled bombings in Zambo (1 p.m.)
MANILA -- Police disarmed four homemade bombs in the southern Philippines over the weekend and blamed Muslim militants for plotting attacks, officials said Monday.
A suspected member of the rebel Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) told investigators he intended to plant a 81 mm mortar shell attached to a cell phone triggering device, but authorities arrested him and seized the explosive on Sunday, said military spokesman Major Armand Rico.
Rico said the suspect, Arman Mano, told authorities he allegedly wanted to set the bomb at a public van terminal in Isulan township in Sultan Kudarat province. He was arrested in nearby Maguindanao province's Talayan township, Rico said, without elaborating.
Security forces launched follow-up operations against other suspected members of the group, Rico said.
The police chief in Zamboanga city, where an ordnance team detonated a powerful bomb on Saturday, said suspects included militants belonging to the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf group and the MILF, a group engaged in Malaysian-brokered peace talks with the government. (AP) |
