Bombing kills Marine, 4 others wounded in Maguindanao

COTABATO CITY - A bomb explosion had killed a Philippine Marine and wounded four others in a daring roadside attack in the province of Maguindanao in the war-torn Muslim autonomous region in the South.

Photos released by the 6th Infantry Division to the regional newspaper Mindanao Examiner show the military truck hit by a roadside bomb in Datu Hoffer town as Marines inspect the blast site.

A Philippine Army photo shows an improvised explosive device recovered by soldiers in Maguindanao's Mamasapano town. On Friday, a roadside bombing killed a Marine and wounded 4 others in nearby Datu Hoffer town which the military claimed is a terror attack.

Officials have confirmed the attack and said the explosion targeted a convoy of the 5^th Military Company of the Marine Battalion Landing Team 5 in the village of Lipongo in Datu Hoffer town.

The Friday attack came barely 2 days after soldiers recovered an improvised explosive device in the village called Pimblakan in Mamasapano town, not far from Datu Hoffer.

The commander of the 6^th Infantry Division, Maj. Gen. Juvymax Uy, said the attacker used an anti-personnel mine in blasting the route where the Marine convoy passed.

“The explosion resulted in the death of one Marine and the wounding of four others,” he said, adding, no individual or group claimed responsible for the bombing. “Investigation is ongoing to identify the perpetrators of this inhumane act of terrorism,”

The identities and rank of the casualties were not made public with Uy saying they have yet to inform the families of what had happened.

Lt. Gen. Corleto Vinluan Jr., chief of the Western Mindanao Command, branded the attack as “horrendous” and tagged terrorists as behind the bombing. But he did not say whose group was behind the attack, although several pro-ISIS groups are operating in the restive province.

“This horrendous act perpetrated by the terrorists is simply unacceptable,” he said. “Rest assured that we will exhaust every available resource to bring the perpetrators to justice.” 

On Tuesday evening, soldiers in Mamasapano town recovered an explosive made from flash power - a pyrotechnic mixture of oxidizer and metallic fuel which burns quickly - and assembled with assorted nails and complete with a blasting cap, a battery and a wireless remote control switch. (Rhoderick Benez)

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