Four people have been killed in an explosion at a Catholic Mass in the southern Philippines on Sunday morning. The incident occurred at the gymnasium of Mindanao State University in Marawi, the country’s largest Muslim city.
Forty-two others suffered mostly minor wounds, authorities said, adding the situation was “under control”.
In 2017, Marawi was the scene of a five-month battle between government forces and militants with links to the Islamic State group.
The Daulah Islamiyah-Maute Group could be behind Sunday’s bombing, said Brig Gen Allan Nobleza, the police commander in the region.
Gen Nobleza said 11 of its members died in an encounter with the Philippine Army last Friday in neighbouring Datu Hoffer Ampatuan town – suggesting Sunday’s explosion could be a form of retaliation.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr condemned the blast as a “senseless and most heinous” act, which was “perpetrated by foreign terrorists”. He did not elaborate.
He appealed to the public to remain calm. “Rest assured, we will bring the perpetrators of this ruthless act to justice,” he said.
Credit: bbc.com
