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October 17, 2006
Philippines: Islamist Bomb Explodes - Materials Seized
News from Reuters AlertNet, AKI, Zamboanga Sun Star, China Peoples' Daily, and Deutsche Presse Agentur via Raw Story, Khaleej Times and Telegu reports on the current situation in the Philippines.
On October 10 and 11 there were Islamist bomb attacks on the southern island of Mindanao, which killed twelve people. It was surmised that the bombings were connected to the arrest of the wife of Dulmatin, a Jemaah Islamiyah leader.
The woman had been arrested in Jolo island, southwest of Mindanao. Her husband has been taking refuge with Islamists from Filipino group Abu Sayyaf on Jolo. Currently the Filipino army is mounting a campaign against Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiyah activists who are on this island.
On Sunday (October 15), an explosion happened at a police compound on Jolo island. Two people were injured. The blast happened inside Camp Asturias in downtown Jolo city, where there is also a 10-bedroom inn.
On the west of Mindanao island at Pagadian City in Zamboanga del Sur province, troops had found and defused a homemade bomb earlier in the day.
This morning, following a tip-off, a large cache of explosives was discovered on a boat at Zamboanga City port. The explosive material was ammonium nitrate, which was on a boat which had arrived at the port from Jolo island. The chemical was stored inside a fish cooler, under layers of fish on the boat MV Nickel Princely.
The port police commander, Major Frank Clavecillas, said: "We have intelligence report about this shipment and security forces had been alerted about the arrival of the ship. We are still investigating whether this cargo is owned by the Abu Sayyaf or Jemaah Islamiya. We also have intelligence reports that a shipment of ammunition is also on its way to Zamboanga from Jolo."
When the boat arrived at Zamboanga at 6 am local time, a truck driver and two others claimed the cargo. These individuals and three men were placed under arrest. The ammonium nitrate which was marked "Made in France" was found in eight bags. In total, it weighed 200 kilograms or half a tonne.
Ammonium nitrate was used in the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, in 1995, killing 168 people. The discovery of French-made ammonium nitrate by police is the first time this has happened. Previous smuggled ammonium nitrate has come from Indonesia or Malaysia.
Col. Antonio Supnet, commander of the Anti-Terror Task Force at Zamboanga said that last month, a supply of 500 kilograms had been discovered on another boat which had come from Jolo.
Today, police units throughout the Philippines were placed on high alert, fearing more attacks by Islamists.
Posted by Giraldus Cambrensis at October 17, 2006 8:40 AM
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