Talks to end the Muslim rebellion in the southern Philippine island of Mindanao have foundered and residents warned the Government that the possibility of a new war breaking out was not remote.
While negotiators struggled to resolve the deadlock on major issues, unidentified men have staged a series of bomb attacks on Catholic churches and in suburbs of the southern city of Zamboanga, officials said.
'The group responsible for these bombings wants to drive a wedge between Christians and Muslims,' said National Police Director Recaredo Sarmiento.
More than 50,000 people have been killed in the Muslim secessionist rebellion over the past 25 years.
The rebel Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) agreed to a cease-fire in 1989 after the Government granted some of its demands, which included setting up an autonomous Muslim region in Mindanao.
But the talks intended to end the war have been snagged by disagreements on the number of provinces in the autonomous region and the vigorous objections of the Christian population, which is in the majority.
Chief government negotiator Manuel Yan said the MNLF was demanding the number of provinces under the Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao be doubled to eight.
