As investigation proceed to unearth the cruel victims behind the Latema explosion in Nairobi late last evening closely following the Dusit attack, another country is nursing the wounds of a twin bomb at church setting.
Two bombs exploded outside a Roman Catholic cathedral on a southern Philippine island where militants are active, killing at least 27 people and wounding 77 during a Sunday Mass, officials said.
The first bomb went off in or near the Jolo cathedral in the provincial capital, followed by a second blast outside the compound as government forces were responding to the attack, security officials said.
Photos on social media showed debris and bodies lying on a busy street outside the Cathedral of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, which has been hit by bombs in the past.
Troops in armored carriers sealed off the main road leading to the church while vehicles were transporting the dead and wounded to the hospital. Some casualties were evacuated by air to nearby Zamboanga city.
No one has claimed responsibility of the attack yet.
Defence Secretary Delfin Lorenzana called the attack a “dastardly act” and urged the local population to be vigilant and work with the authorities to “deny terrorism any victory”.
“We will use the full force of the law to bring to justice the perpetrators behind this incident,” he said in a statement.
Civilians bore the brunt of the attack, which also killed at least seven soldiers.
Colonel Gerry Besana, spokesman of the military’s Western Mindanao Command, said an examination of the bomb materials should reveal who was behind it.