The 2006 Central Mindanao bombings were a series of three bombings and one attempted bombing in Central Mindanao on October 10 and 11. Eight people were killed and between 30 and 46 were injured.

Bombings

Tacurong

A bomb exploded in a public market in

Tacurong City Tacurong, officially the City of Tacurong ( hil, Dakbanwa sang Tacurong; fil, Lungsod ng Tacurong; Maguindanaon: ''Kuta nu Takurung'', Jawi: كوتا نو تاكوروڠ), is a 4th class component city in the province of Sultan Kudarat, Phi ...

, a predominantly Christian agricultural region in

Sultan Kudarat Sultan Kudarat, officially the Province of Sultan Kudarat ( hil, Kapuoran sang Sultan Kudarat; Maguindanaon: ''Dairat nu Sultan Kudarat'', Jawi: دايرت نو سلطان كودرت; ceb, Lalawigan sa Sultan Kudarat; tl, Lalawigan ng Sul ...

, killing two women and injuring at least 4 others. A guard reportedly found the bomb in a bag filled with packets of corn chips and attempted to remove it from a crowd before it exploded, preventing more casualties. The bomb was described as being formed from a mortar round and remotely triggered by cell phone, however it apparently went off prematurely.

Makilala

A bomb exploded at around 8 p.m. in front of the town hall of Makilala town in the southern part of

North Cotabato Cotabato or North Cotabato ( hil, Aminhan Cotabato; ceb, Amihanang Cotabato; Maguindanaon: ''Pangutaran Kutawatu'', Jawi: ڤڠوترن كوتاواتو; fil, Hilagang Cotabato), officially the Province of Cotabato, is a landlocked province in ...

province, killing 6 and injuring at least 42 others. The bomb exploded nearby a row of commercial stalls and a carnival during celebrations of Makilala's founding anniversary. Quoting witnesses, the North Cotabato Provincial Police Chief stated an unidentified man carrying a plastic bag was seen visiting a stall selling alcohol in a crowded area along a highway, the explosion occurred minutes later. The powerful explosion destroyed a row of stalls, two motorcycle taxis and left a deep crater in the asphalt road, the Police Chief said. The following day, another bomb was defused by the authorities nearby. (Link dead as of February 19, 2007)

Response

Government

Emmanuel Piñol, the governor of Cotabato province, blamed members of the

Moro Islamic Liberation Front The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF; ar, ''Jabhat Taḥrīr Moro al-ʾIslāmiyyah'') is a group based in Mindanao seeking an autonomous region of the Moro people from the central government. The group has a presence in the Bangsamoro r ...

(MILF) for the bombings, citing similarities with previous bombings. According to Piñol, the bomb used in Makilala had "all the signatures of the MILF". Army bomb experts said that the bomb was detonated via a

mobile phone A mobile phone, cellular phone, cell phone, cellphone, handphone, hand phone or pocket phone, sometimes shortened to simply mobile, cell, or just phone, is a portable telephone that can make and receive calls over a radio frequency link whi ...

and that twenty missed calls were logged when the phone was found. Others suggest the

Abu Sayyaf Abu Sayyaf (; ar, جماعة أبو سياف; ', ASG), officially known by the Islamic State as the Islamic State – East Asia Province, is a Jihadist militant and pirate group that follows the Wahhabi doctrine of Sunni Islam. It is base ...

Jemaah Islamiyah Jemaah Islamiyah ( ar, الجماعة الإسلامية, ''al-Jamāʿah al-Islāmiyyah'', meaning "Islamic Congregation", frequently abbreviated JI) is a Southeast Asian militant extremist Islamist terrorist group based in Indonesia, which i ...

(JI) was behind the attacks, as the arrest of Istiada Binti Oemar Sovie, the wife of JI leader Dulmatin, in Sulu may have prompted the attacks. Dulmatin himself is reportedly hiding on

Jolo Island Jolo ( tsg, Sūg) is a volcanic island in the southwest Philippines and the primary island of the province of Sulu, on which the capital of the same name is situated. It is located in the Sulu Archipelago, between Borneo and Mindanao, and has ...

International

A day after the attacks, the Australian government advised its nationals to exercise a “high degree of caution...due to high threat of terrorist attack” and to avoid places frequented by foreigners in Metro

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

Mindanao Mindanao ( ) ( Jawi: مينداناو) is the second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the island is part of an island group of ...

(including Sulu), and

Cebu Cebu (; ceb, Sugbo), officially the Province of Cebu ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Sugbo; tl, Lalawigan ng Cebu; hil, Kapuroan sang Sugbo), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 16 ...

. The

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, Japan,

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

also issued travel warnings.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Central Mindanao Bombings Mass murder in 2006 2006 crimes in the Philippines History of Cotabato History of Sultan Kudarat Moro conflict Islamic terrorist incidents in 2006 Terrorist incidents in Asia in 2006 Improvised explosive device bombings in the Philippines Terrorist incidents in the Philippines in 2006