ZAMBOANGA CITY, 1 May 2005 — A two-year old boy and an adult were killed and over dozen injured in a rifle grenade explosion yesterday on a remote Muslim enclave in the southern Philippine port city of Zamboanga, officials said.
Police said a man was toying with the grenade when it exploded in front of a crowd in the village of Marangan, about 40 kilometers from downtown of Zamboanga, killing the child instantly. The adult victim died in hospital.
Among the 14 injured was Arabi Ajilun, who police said owned the grenade and the house close to where the blast occurred.
“The man was apparently toying with the grenade when it exploded. This is not related to terrorism, but an accident,” Zamboanga City police chief Henry Lozanes told Arab News.
Police said it was unknown why Ajilun had a grenade. Some villagers said Ajilun found it somewhere, brought it home and started showing it off to neighbors.
Chief Superintendent Vidal Querol, a regional police chief, said the grenade found its way to a drunken man, who began playing with it.
“He lit the bottom of the grenade using his cigarette. It suddenly exploded in front of many people,” said Querol.
The powerful blast decapitated the hand of a man and one boy is still fighting for his life in the Zamboanga Medical Center, where many of the victims were brought, said police.
Doctors said most of the victims suffered shrapnel wounds in the body. Police said they would file criminal charges against Ajilun.
Firearms and explosives are commonly found in the southern Philippines, where Moro and communist rebels are actively operating.
