bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sponsorType

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Agence France-Presse

A grenade attack on a mosque in southern Philippines killed two people on Wednesday, just days after a deadly Catholic cathedral bombing and a vote backing Muslim self-rule in the region.
The predawn explosion tore through the mosque in the island of Mindanao, home to the Philippines’ Muslim minority, as victims were sleeping. Four people were wounded in the attack.
The latest blast prompted worries of sectarian retaliation in the majority-Catholic Philippines, but the authorities urged unity across faiths as investigators hunted a motive.
Just three days earlier, a bombing at a cathedral on the neighbouring island of Jolo claimed 21 lives at Sunday mass in an assault claimed by Islamic State.

The authorities warned against speculating the mosque attack was an act of revenge, saying there was no indication the incidents were related.
“We’re still looking at it, but we have not found any connection,” said Defence Secretary Delfin Lorenzana. “In the past when churches were bombed ... there were no revenge attacks.”
The authorities have not publicly identified any suspects. No one has claimed responsibility for the mosque attack.
Voters give a big ‘aye’ to Muslim self-rule in Philippines’ south
“Regardless of one’s faith (we) must resist becoming a victim of this vicious cycle of violence these terrorists are now attempting to create,” said Zia Alonto Adiong, a politician in the south of Philippines, on Twitter. “Let us not fall into their trap and give them the satisfaction of turning ourselves (Muslims & Christians) into enemies.”
The authorities are also hunting for those behind the cathedral assault, which security forces initially said was not a suicide bombing.
On Tuesday, however, President Rodrigo Duterte contradicted them, saying one of the bombers had blown himself up outside the cathedral.

Lorenzana appeared to walk back the president’s comments on Wednesday, saying: “The final conclusion is not there yet. It’s still being investigated.”
The probe was zeroing in on a group tied to the notorious Islamist kidnap-for-ransom group Abu Sayyaf, which has pledged allegiance to Islamic State.
Police said they tried to arrest one of the suspects on Tuesday, but he got away and an armed man was shot dead by officers in the process.
The attacks have cast a shadow over hopes that a vote to give Muslims in the south more control over their own affairs would help quell long-running separatist violence.
‘French Spider-Man’ arrested after scaling 47-storey skyscraper in Manila
Rebels and the government in Manila have expressed hope the new so-called Bangsamoro area will finally draw the investment needed to pull the region out of the brutal poverty that makes it a hotspot for recruiting radicals.
However, hardline factions aligned with IS were not part of the decades-long peace process with the nation’s largest separatist group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, that culminated January 21 with the resounding approval of a new Muslim led-region in the south.
Jolo, which is home to hardline Islamist factions, is the only area in the southern Philippines that voted against the Bangsamoro.
The grenade attack on Wednesday drew immediate condemnation from authorities.
“There is no redeeming such blasphemous murder. It is the highest form of cowardice and obscenity to attack people who at prayer,” said regional leader Mujiv Hataman. “We call on people of all faiths ... to come together to pray for peace.”


Brazilian beef exports seen as stable in 2026 ‘despite Chinese safeguards’

Impeachment complaint against Philippines’ Marcos seen by some as ‘inoculation’ tactic

2026 Hong Kong marathon, China pursues self-reliance: 5 weekend reads you missed

Philippines’ first gas discovery in over a decade offers hope for looming energy crisis

The Philippines

Philippines violence: two killed in grenade attack on Mindanao mosque

A police investigator examines the scene of the grenade attack. Photo: AP

epa07330784 A resident looks into a mosque where a fragmentation grenade was lobbed and exploded, killing two people past midnight in a village in Zamboanga City, southern Philippines 30 January 2019. The grenade attack occurred just days after a Catholic church bomb attack killed 20 people in Jolo, Sulu province in the southern Philippines on 27 January. EPA-EFE/LAURENZ CASTILLO

epa07330783 Philippine police gather outside a mosque where a fragmentation grenade was lobbed and exploded, killing two people past midnight in a village in Zamboanga City, southern Philippines 30 January 2019. The grenade attack occurred just days after a Catholic church bomb attack killed 20 people in Jolo, Sulu province in the southern Philippines on 27 January. EPA-EFE/LAURENZ CASTILLO

Mindanao violence: Duterte’s excuse to impose martial law?

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte says he'll be harsh in enforcing martial law in his country's south. Photo: AP Photo

An armoured car in Mindanao.

Resident fleeing from Marawi city,where gunmen who had declared allegiance to the Islamic State group rampaged through the southern city, are cramped on a truck as they traverse a traffic gridlock near a police checkpoint at the entrance of Iligan City, in southern island of Mindanao on May 24, 2017. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte warned that martial law would be "harsh" and like a dictatorship, after imposing military rule in the south of the country to combat Islamist militants. / AFP PHOTO / TED ALJIBE

epa05985494 Filipino soldiers man a military armoured personnel carrier on a street following President Rodrigo Duterte's declaration of Martial law in Cotabato City, Mindanao Island, southern Philippines, 24 May 2017. According to media reports, President Rodrigo Duterte declared martial law on the southern island of Mindanao in response to a new armed offensive by the Maute group, one of the jihadist bands operating in the region. The Philippine leader, who had already threatened to take the measure, made the announcement in Moscow, where he is on an official visit, in a televised message delivered by his spokesman, Ernesto Abella. EPA/ALTHEA BALLENTES

Philippine policemen check evacuees from Marawi aboard a van at a checkpoint by the entrance of Iligan City, in southern island of Mindanao on May 24, 2017. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte warned that martial law would be "harsh" and like a dictatorship, after imposing military rule in the south of the country to combat Islamist militants. / AFP PHOTO / TED ALJIBE

Philippine rebels abduct soldiers and militiamen in predawn raid on Mindanao military base

Guerillas of the New People's Army in the Sierra Madre mountain range. Photo: AFP

TOPSHOT - This photo taken on July 30, 2017 shows guerrillas of the New People's Army (NPA) resting among bushes in the Sierra Madre mountain range, located east of Manila. Fuelled by one of the world's starkest rich-poor divides, a Maoist rebellion that began months before the first human landed on the moon plods on even though the country now boasts one of the world's fastest-growing economies. / AFP PHOTO / Noel CELIS / TO GO WITH Philippines-unrest-communist-peace,FOCUS by Cecil MORELLA

TOPSHOT - This photo taken on July 30, 2017 shows Ka Kathryn, a 25-year-old from a middle-class family, who is a guerrilla of the New People's Army (NPA) in the Sierra Madre mountain range, located east of Manila. Fuelled by one of the world's starkest rich-poor divides, a Maoist rebellion that began months before the first human landed on the moon plods on even though the country now boasts one of the world's fastest-growing economies. / AFP PHOTO / Noel CELIS / TO GO WITH Philippines-unrest-communist-peace,FOCUS by Cecil MORELLA

epa06348394 A handout photo made available by the Presidential Photographers Division (PPD) shows Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte (C) saluting during the 67th anniversary of the First Scout Ranger Regiment (FSRR) at a military camp in San Miguel, Bulacan province, Philippines, 24 November 2017. On November 23, Duterte signed Proclamation Number 360 formally terminating peace talks with the communist block, the National Democratic Front (NDF), following continued attacks by its armed wing, the New People's Army (NPA), on government troops. EPA-EFE/ACE MORANDANTE HANDOUT HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES

Philippine troops team up with old enemy to fight pro-Islamic State gunmen in Mindanao

Military feeds intelligence to Moro Islamic Liberation Front in the fight against about 60 militants

In this photo taken on September 5, 2017 shows a Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels (R) aboard a motorcycle, speeding past a military vehicle in Datu Salibo town, Maguindanao province, in southern island of Mindanao. Firing artillery shells and rockets, the Philippine military said it is backing mainstream Muslim rebels in a deadly fight against radical militants who support the Islamic State group. / AFP PHOTO / FERDINANDH CABRERA

A Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebel with face covered, along with a government soldier man a mobile check point in Datu Salibo town, Maguindanao province, in southern island of Mindanao. Photo: AFP

Why Philippines’ Duterte needs a lighter touch, not martial law, to end militancy in Mindanao

Families carrying their belongings flee Marawi city, in the southern mainly Muslim island of Mindanao, on May 26, amid fighting between Islamist militants and government forces. Photo: AFP

epa05997279 Filipino government troops check motorists at a checkpoint as fighting between Islamist militants and government forces continues in Marawi city, Mindanao island, southern Philippines, 29 May 2017. According to media reports, several foreigners are fighting alongside a local rebel group who laid siege to the Philippines' southern city of Marawi, on the island of Mindanao, a top official said. The Marawi crisis began when armed Maute militants tried to take over the city after armed forces carried out an operation to capture Isnilon Hapilon, the country's most wanted Islamist, an IS collaborator and featured on the list of terrorists wanted by the United States. The Islamist guerrillas wreaked havoc in Marawi, a city of 200,000 inhabitants, by setting fire to the police station, a school, a prison and a church, where they kidnapped a priest and 13 parishioners who they are still holding hostage. EPA/FRANCIS R. MALASIG

epa05991476 A handout photo made available by the Presidential Photographers Division (PPD) on 26 May 2017 shows Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte (R) pinning a medal to a wounded soldier during visitation of troops in Iligan city, Mindanao island, southern Philippines, 26 May 2017, as fighting between Islamist militants and government forces continues. According to media reports, several foreigners are fighting alongside a local rebel group who laid siege to the Philippines' southern city of Marawi, on the island of Mindanao, a top official said. EPA/ALBERT ALCAIN/HO HANDOUT HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES

Activists hold up posters during an anti-martial Law protest in front of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) headquarters in Manila on May 29, 2017. Duterte on May 23 imposed martial law in the Mindanao region, home to 20 million people, following deadly clashes in a mostly Muslim-populated city involving militants whom he said were trying to establish a caliphate for the Islamic State group. / AFP PHOTO / NOEL CELIS

A Philippine army soldier stands guard next to images of wanted militants, displayed along a highway where they set up a check point, in Balo-i on the southern island of Mindanao on May 29, 2017. Security forces traded heavy gunfire with Islamist militants inside a southern Philippine city on May 29, as fears grew for up to 2,000 people unable to escape a week of fighting that has left women and children among the dead. / AFP PHOTO / TED ALJIBE

Bangsamoro autonomy vote in southern Philippines proves peaceful, apart from a grenade

A woman shows her inked thumb after voting in Cotabato City. Photo: AFP

Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) members secure Camp Darapanan in Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao on the southern island of Mindanao on July 29, 2018. Nearly 100,000 members of the Philippines' largest Muslim rebel group gathered on July 29 to discuss a landmark law granting them autonomy, expressing hope it would make their "dream of peace" a reality. / AFP PHOTO / FERDINANDH CABRERA

A Muslim woman casts her ballot at a voting precinct in Cotabato on the southern Philippine island of Mindanao on January 21, 2019, during a vote on giving the nation's Muslim minority greater control over the region. - A decades-long push to halt the violence that has claimed some 150,000 lives in the southern Philippines culminated on January 21 with a vote on giving the nation's Muslim minority greater control over the region. (Photo by Noel CELIS / AFP)

Vote map

Moro Islamic Liberation Front chairman casts vote. Photo: Reuters

News

Asia

Southeast Asia

The attacks have cast a shadow over voters’ decisive approval of giving Muslims in the south more control over their own affairs
Authorities have urged unity among faiths as investigators hunt for a motive


The attacks have cast a shadow over voters’ decisive approval of giving Muslims in the south more control over their own affairs


Philippines insurgency

Rodrigo Duterte