ZAMBOANGA CITY – Over a dozen people were killed and wounded in separate gun attacks on Monday in southern Philippines where voters trooped to polling precincts to elect their village officials.
Police said six people, one of them a village chieftain Ibrahim Atang, were shot and hacked by attackers outside a polling precinct in a school in Basilan’s Tuburan town.
 |
| Members of the Bureau of Fire in Basilan province bring wounded people to hospital following a shooting incident in Tuburan town. (BFP Basilan photos) |
A video clip taken by one of the voters during the shooting quickly went viral on social media. The clip shows civilians scampering for safety as gunshots from automatic weapons can be heard. A woman was also heard crying in the background as she prayed for the safety of her relatives trapped in the school compound in the village of Lahi-Lahi.
Police did not say how many attackers were involved in the shooting or if any of them was captured or not. Another report said one of the shooters was a member of the Philippine Coast Guard, but this could not be immediately confirmed.
Members of the Bureau of Fire in Basilan province were quick to respond to the aftermath of the shooting to bring the wounded, including one of its own, to the hospital.
A voter, Nasra Uddin, was shot dead and
another wounded when a lone gunman entered a polling precinct at the Badja Elementary School in Basilan’s Tipo-Tipo town and shot
them, according to reports.
A village official was also shot dead in Lamitan City. No other details were immediately made available by the police.
Police also reported that two people were gunned down and five more wounded on Election Day after rival groups clashed in Datu Odin Sinsuat town in Maguindanao del Norte.
In Lanao del Sur’s Butig town, a report said two opposing brothers running as village chieftain in Butig town, engaged in a heated argument inside a polling precinct and one of them ended up dead after he was shot by his brother.
The provinces of Basilan, Maguindanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur belong to the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. (Mindanao Examiner)
No comments:
Post a Comment