ZAMBOANGA CITY, 1 January 2006 - Two people were killed and at 13 others injured in a grenade attack on a village in North Cotabato province in the southern Philippines, officials said yesterday.
Officials said one of two men on board a motorcycle the grenade into a crowd watching billiard games Friday afternoon. The duo escaped after the attack, said Maj. Gen. Agustin Demaala, commander of the Army's 6th Infantry Division.
"The two victims, a Muslim and a Christian, died in hospital from serious wounds," he told the Arab News yesterday.
An official of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) said their guerrillas were helping police and soldiers track down the two still unidentified attackers.
"Our forces are tracking the attackers and we hope to arrest them and bring justice to the victims," said MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu.
Police said they were still investigating the motive of the attack. No group or individual has claimed responsibility for the blast.
The province was previously bombed by Abu Sayyaf militants, a group is tied to the Al-Qaeda terror network.
Aside from the Abu Sayyaf, communist insurgents are also active in the area, and had attacked government and military targets in the past.
Last month, New People's Army insurgents detonated a land mine in North Cotabato's Tulunan town, killing three soldiers and wounding about a dozen more.
Grenade attacks during gatherings in the past have also been attributed to feuding families of groups.
