2 hurt in Sultan Kudarat market blast

COTABATO, Philippines (UPDATED) – At least two people were hurt in a grenade explosion inside a public market in Isulan, Sultan Kudarat, on Tuesday, February 3, a local official said.

Isulan Mayor Diosdado Pallasigue said the blast occurred past 11 am, hurting two civilians.

“We are investigating the attack. Our bomb experts are trying to determine what was used in the explosion,” Pallasigue said.

No one has claimed responsibility for the explosion. 

Captain Joan Petinglay, spokesperson of the military’s 6th Infantry Division, said in an update report that a hand grenade was used in the blast.

Petinglay added that the victims were immediately brought to the nearest hospital.

Senior Superintendent Rex Dela Rosa said that investigators and the Explosives Ordnance team were immedaitely deployed the crime scene.

Central Mindanao has been on high alert for possible retaliatory attacks, following the reported death of Malaysian terrorist Zulkifli bin Hir, better known as “Marwan,” during a police operation in Mamasapano town in Maguindanao on January 25.

A day before the Isulan market incident, text messages circulated on possible bomb attacks in the region, citing the operations against Marwan and Filipino terrorist Abdul Basit Usman. 

The  two terrorists are on the US’ most wanted list and carry hefty bounties – $5 million for Marwan for his involvement in the 2002 Bali bombing in Indonesia, and $1 million for Usman, a Filipino bomb expert.

On January 25, a team from the Philippine National Police Special Action Force (PNP SAF) clashed with the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), leaving 44 SAF troopers, 17 MILF fighters, and several civilians dead.

Prior to the Isulan market blast, there had been similar attacks on public markets in the region, among them, in Mlang town in North Cotabato, which killed one person anf hurt at least 36 others on December 31, 2014. – with reports from Karlos Manlupig/Rappler.com