Manila: On Wednesday morning, at least two people have been killed and 4 others were injured in a grenade explosion inside a mosque in Southern Philippines.
"A grenade was lobbed inside a mosque killing two persons and wounding another four", regional military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Gerry Besana said of the attack in Zamboanga City. The city police said that the victims, most of whom were Muslim preachers from the island province of Basilan and nearby provinces, were sleeping during the attack.
The blast comes as the country was on high alert after the cathedral bombing that killed 21 people at the Sunday mass on the remote Muslim-majority island of Jolo. The Philippine authorities blamed the attack on local terrorist group Abu Sayyaf. However, Col. Leonel Nicolas of the military's Joint Task Force Zamboanga Commander said that the mosque blast is not a retaliatory act to the twin bombings in southern Philippines which happened several days ago.
No one has claimed responsibility for the attack, so far.