One person was killed and 48 others wounded yesterday as a parked car exploded in the southern Philippines, which local authorities blamed the blast on Abu Sayyaf militants.Witnesses reported that a parked car went up in flames and was blasted to bits in a powerful mid-afternoon explosion that shattered glass panels in a commercial section on the outskirts of Zamboanga City.
Senior Superintendent Angelito Casimiro, the city police chief, said no group has yet claimed responsibility for the blast and the lone fatality was not immediately identified.
Zamboanga City Mayor Maria Isabelle Climaco alleged the blast was tied to a plan by the Abu Sayyaf to help 57 comrades break out from the city jail. She said, "This is an SOS call for the 57 inmates to be removed and transferred for the safety and protection of the city."
Zamboanga City's jail warden, Julius Arro, said that prison authorities foiled an attempt to slip at least one gun and 100 bullets to Abu Sayyaf detainees on Monday. No arrests were made, he added.