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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Duterte visits Jolo to pay respects to soldiers killed in twin blasts

Duterte visits Jolo to pay respects to soldiers killed in twin blasts

Published Aug 30, 2020 05:49 pm

President Duterte was expected to visit Jolo, Sulu, on Sunday a week after two deadly explosions ripped through the town and left several people dead and scores wounded.

The President said he wanted to visit the blast site and pay respect to the soldiers killed as part of his duty as the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces.

“I’m going to Jolo, diretso ako ngayon sa Jolo, doon sa blast site (I'm going to Jolo, I'm on my way to Jolo today, to the blast site)," Duterte said in a video message during an online concert held by supporters for him Sunday afternoon.

"Mabigyan ko lang ang mga sundalo natin, mga sundalo ko, mga pulis ko ng importansya sa kanilang kamatayan. I’ll go there to fulfil the duty of a commander-in-chief. Magti-take off kami (I want to give importance to our soldiers, my soldiers, my policemen in their deaths. I'll go there to fulfill the duty of a commander-in-chief. We're about to take off)," he added.

Duterte made a brief appearance in the "Singing for the President" concert on Facebook through a video call while inside an airplane. He was accompanied by his former aide and now Senator Christopher Go who placed the call to the concert organizers.

Duterte also expressed his gratitude to his supporters who mounted the online concert and invited them to visit his home after the pandemic.

On August 24, 15 people were killed while dozens were injured after two bombings rocked Jolo town. The two bombs reportedly went off within an hour of each other.  Seven soldiers were among those killed in the attack. 

SAF battalion deployed to Sulu

The Philippine National Police (PNP) will deploy a battalion of its elite personnel in Sulu to assist the military and the local police force in securing the province and in running after those involved in the twin bombings in Jolo.

PNP spokesman Police Brig. Gen. Bernard Banac said the SAF battalion is composed of 348 fully-equipped and well-trained personnel who are all tasked to intensify the security and manhunt against the Abu Sayyaf Group and the terrorists that the group has been coddling.

He said half of the battalion will come from the SAF headquarters in Taguig City while the other half will be composed of SAF commandos assigned in various areas in the western part of Mindanao.

Aside from police commandos, Banac said experts from the Philippine Bomb Data Center (PBDC) and Crime Laboratory will also be sent to Sulu to assist in the investigation of the bombings that were confirmed to have been perpetrated by suicide bombers.

“The PBDC analysts will seek to determine any specific bomb signature of the explosives that were detonated based on reconstruction of forensic evidence gathered by Crime Laboratory and other security forces that responded to the incident,” said Banac.

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