27 dead as bombs hit cathedral in Philippines during Mass

quote:

---

Two bombs minutes apart tore through a Roman Catholic cathedral on a southern Philippine island where Muslim militants are active, killing at least 27 people and wounding 77 others during a Sunday Mass, officials said.

Witnesses said the first blast inside the Jolo cathedral in the provincial capital sent churchgoers, some of them wounded, to stampede out of the main door. Army troops and police posted outside were rushing in when the second bomb went off about one minute later near the main entrance, causing more deaths and injuries. The military was checking a report that the second explosive device may have been attached to a parked motorcycle.

---

quote:

---

Police said at least 27 people died and 77 were wounded. The fatalities included 20 civilians and seven troops. Among the wounded were 14 troops, two police and 61 civilians.

---

quote:

---

Security officials were looking "at different threat groups and they still can't say if this has something to do with the just concluded plebiscite," Albayalde, the national police chief, told ABS-CBN TV network.

Aside from the small but brutal Abu Sayyaf group, other militant groups in Sulu include a small band of young jihadis aligned with the Islamic State group, which has also carried out assaults, including ransom kidnappings and beheadings.

---