By Francis Wakefield
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana allayed fears by some that there will be an escalation of bombings outside of Mindanao.
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana (Office of the Secretary of National Defense / MANILA BULLETIN)
Lorenzana made the remark in a press briefing shortly after a speech he delivered during the National Defense College of the Philippines (NDCP) Alumni Forum "The National Security Outlook for the Philippines in 2019" at the NDCP building in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City on Monday.
Lorenzana's comment came more than a week after two bombs exploded inside and outside at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Cathedral in Walled City, Jolo, Sulu.
A total of 22 people, including soldiers, were killed while 101 others were hurt as a result of two explosions that took place inside and outside the church.
"No, we do not. We haven’t seen any indication that this will escalate outside Mindanao. So maybe the vulnerable cities there are Zamboanga, Cotabato or whatever," Lorenzana said.
"I don't see, we haven't seen any indication or reports coming from abroad or local that this will escalate somewhere outside Mindanao," he added.
With regards to the entry of foreign terrorist here in the country especially in Jolo, Sulu, the three countries which forms the so-called East Asia Isis - Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines - are working together to fight terrorism.
"The three countries Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines, we consider ourselves as just one area that is infested by terrorist. The so-called East Asia Isis actually straddles the three countries. So we are all on this together. We have agreed to fight this together," Lorenzana said.
Lorenzana said foreign terrorists in previous years arrived in Jolo, Sulu, and used the area as a "hide-out" and from where they do their operations.
In an earlier interview, Lorenzana said that evidences found at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Cathedral in Walled City, Jolo, Sulu following the explosions that took place there last January 27, 2019, could be enough to warrant that it was done by a suicide bomber.
Lorenzana made the remark following the declaration by police that the attack was a suicide bombing.
He said for one the church was heavily guarded 24 hours daily since August of last year when threats to bomb it surfaced.
"Those entering were screened. All bags and belongings were checked. The bombs could have been strapped in the body of the bomber and escaped the attention of the soldiers doing the screening,'" Lorenzana said.
Lorenzana, at the same time, said the presence of body parts strewn all over the place is another indication that it was done by a suicide bomber.
"According to the forensic investigators of the PNP (Philippine National Police) these body parts could belong to two persons- one inside the church and one outside," he said.
(Francis T. Wakefield)