Religious war fanned

Mario J. Mallari · Feb 1, 2019, 8:00 AM

Don’t fall for it Prober checks the scene of a grenade attack on a mosque in Zamboanga City which was seen as part of efforts to instigate the start of a religious war in the region. AP

A grenade attack on a mosque in Zamboanga City that killed two Muslim preachers early yesterday raised the specter of groups maneuvering to foment a “religious war” in Mindanao as it happened only days after an alleged suicide bombing at a Jolo cathedral, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief of staff Gen. Benjamin Madrigal Jr. said.

The grenade attack happened at a mosque in Sitio Logoy Diutay, Barangay Talon-Talon, Zamboanga City.

On Sunday, twin explosions rocked Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Cathedral in Jolo, leaving 21 people killed and 100 others hurt.

Madrigal downplayed any connection between the grenade blast at a mosque in Barangay Talon-Talon in Zamboanga City at around 12:20 a.m. yesterday and last Sunday’s twin explosions at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Cathedral in Jolo.

The military launched air strikes against Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) targets in Sulu.

“(Yes), we did air strikes yesterday (Tuesday). (I’m) not sure if there are (any) now,” Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said.

Lorenzana added the air strikes were in retaliation for the twin bombings in the province’s capital town of Jolo which left 21 persons dead and 97 others wounded.

“(I) don’t know how many sorties (were conducted),” the Defense chief said when asked how many bombing missions were carried out.

The air strikes were conducted in the towns of Patikul and Indanan in Sulu following President Rodrigo Duterte’s order for an all-out campaign to neutralize the terror group.

On Sunday, twin explosions rocked Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Cathedral in Jolo, leaving 21 people killed and 100 others hurt.

The military launched air strikes against Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) targets in Sulu.

“(Yes), we did air strikes yesterday (Tuesday). (I’m) not sure if there are (any) now,” Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said.

Lorenzana added the air strikes were in retaliation for the twin bombings in the province’s capital town of Jolo which left 21 persons dead and 97 others wounded.

“(I) don’t know how many sorties (were conducted),” the Defense chief said when asked how many bombing missions were carried out.

The air strikes were conducted in the towns of Patikul and Indanan in Sulu following President Rodrigo Duterte’s order for an all-out campaign to neutralize the terror group.

The AFP chief stressed that both terror attacks are now being investigated thoroughly by the AFP and the Philippine National Police (PNP).

“There are some sectors who want to put a religious undertone to what happened and we’d like our constituents, our people to be sober and to be more vigilant,” Madrigal said.

“We’re still investigating who were behind these,” he added.

Madrigal noted the Zamboanga City mosque attack, where three other individuals were wounded, was the result of a grenade blast while the Jolo explosions were brought about by improvised explosive devices (IED).

“They’re different: the one in Zamboanga was a grenade throwing while that in Jolo was an IED,” he stressed.

Police reports said the victims in the grenade blast at the Logoy Diutay Mosque were asleep when they were attacked.

The victims were preachers from Lamitan and Isabela towns in Basilan who were in the city for religious activities.

Subsequently, both Zamboanga City police and the military’s Task Force Zamboanga have intensified checkpoints and increased visibility patrols in several areas in the city.

Marks of atrocity Belongings of worshippers are strewn inside a mosque in Zamboanga City after a grenade attack that killed two people. AFP Best commanders on hand

“Let us not be swayed by the recent developments that seem to project a religious complexion in the recent tragic incidents,” AFP spokesman Brig. Gen. Edgard Arevalo said in a statement.

“The AFP Chief of Staff, Gen. Benjamin Madrigal Jr., conveys the sincere condolences and deep sympathies of soldiers, airmen, sailors and marines to the victims of the attack against civilians inside a mosque in Barangay Talon-Talon in Zamboanga City,” Arevalo said.

He assured the people government troops are currently conducting an investigation to determine the motive of the attacks and bring the perpetrators to justice.

“Your security forces have assisted the victims even as the investigation is ongoing to get to the bottom of this incident. We exhort our citizens for your help and cooperation with your government security forces in addressing these evolving challenges,” he said.

“Gen. Madrigal assures that the best AFP commanders are on the ground and that, in cooperation with the PNP and other agencies of government, are firmly committed to neutralizing these threats. But we can best attain that if we have the unequivocal support of our people in every sitio and barangay since they are more familiar with their localities,” he added.

At the Palace, presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo stressed that the military is actively pursuing the perpetrators of the deadly attacks.

“The successive attacks on two different places of worship depict the ruthlessness and the godlessness of these mass murderers. The Armed Forces of the Philippines will unleash its might and weaponry against these enemies of the State and hunt them ferociously and relentlessly until the law rolls down its guillotine on them,” Panelo said in a statement.

He added the incident was a “challenge to the capability of the government to secure the safety of the inhabitants in Mindanao.”

Still, he gave assurances to the public that the government forces will “secure their safety” at all costs.

Panelo expressed confidence that the people will “not be cowed nor intimidated” by the recent acts of violence. He called on Filipinos to do their part in helping authorities by reporting any suspicious activity or person.

“The quest for peace and progress by the Bangsamoro people will not be stalled by any obstacle thrown at their path. The movement to change the face of Mindanao and the oppressive conditions affecting its people shall move forward despite these acts of terrorism,” the Palace official said.

The bombings happened barely a week since the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) was ratified.

Former Special Assistant to the President Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go also called for national unity amid the Zamboanga grenade attack in Sulu.

Go also called for support and understanding after Mr. Duterte ordered an all-out war against the ASG and their affiliate Ajang-Ajang group who were allegedly behind the Jolo bomb attack.

The unclaimed body parts in the twin explosions at the Jolo cathedral are key to the in-depth investigation of the attack amid a pronouncement by no less than President Duterte that the incident was a case of suicide bombing.

Madrigal stressed the military has not dismissed the possibility of suicide bombing in the Sunday explosions at the Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Cathedral that killed 21 people.

The President said the twin explosions were launched by a couple – the woman was responsible for the explosion right inside the cathedral at the height of a Holy Mass while the man undertook the second blast.

“Currently, we are trying to resolve it, there are still unclaimed body parts… If they remain unclaimed, we would know if this could be what the President is mentioning,” Madrigal said.

“The President has his own sources of information,” he added.

Madrigal said the initial pronouncement downplaying suicide bombing was based on the findings of the Scene of the Crime Operatives.

The AFP chief also cited military information that foreign terrorists are embedded in the Ajang-Ajang Group of Hatib Sawadjaan that was tagged in the Jolo bomb attack.

Madrigal theorized that Sawadjaan’s group is trying to gain attention by pulling off the cathedral attack.

“This group wanted to have recognition by ISIS… (but) there are conditions set for this, one of them is for them to be able to demonstrate leadership, that they have territory and they have the capability,” he said.

Meanwhile, former Senator and Defense Minister Juan Ponce-Enrile warned that there would be an increased danger of violent attacks if martial law were not instituted in Mindanao.