Explosion, second suspected bomb found in Philippine capital before Marcos speech
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The explosion and the discovery of a second suspected bomb came hours before Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos was due to give an annual State of the Nation address.
PHOTO: AFP
- A homemade bomb exploded near the Philippine Justice Ministry early on July 27, causing no casualties, just hours before President Marcos's State of the Nation address.
- A suspected unexploded device was found near the Senate later the same day, with police linking both incidents as possibly related.
- The events occurred amid political tension, including Vice-President Sara Duterte's impeachment trial and a corruption scandal involving flood control projects.
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MANILA – A homemade bomb detonated near the entrance of the Philippine Justice Ministry early on July 27, officials said, followed by the discovery of a suspected unexploded device near the country’s Senate.
The incidents came hours before Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr was due to give an annual State of the Nation address. The explosion, which took place just after midnight, resulted in no casualties.
National police chief Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr told reporters on July 27 there was a “big possibility or probability that the two (incidents) are related”. He said that while the police had contingency plans for “bomb threats, actual bombings and other (things)... something got past us and exploded in front of the Department of Justice”.
It was not immediately clear how large the early morning blast had been.
“We are still investigating, so we cannot give you details on how massive or small the explosion was,” Manila police spokesman Philipp Ines told AFP.
Images posted by Philippine media showed what appeared to be a vehicle windscreen cracked by the blast and a small amount of debris.
Police said in one report that the device at the Senate had been spotted on a street abutting the building just before 8.30am by a tow truck driver, who alerted security staff.
Personnel trained in handling explosive ordnance removed materials from the scene for testing, including a blasting cap, clock and a jar containing “brown powder”.
Regional police spokeswoman Hazel Asilo declined to estimate the size of the explosion the device could have produced.
Marcos’ speech on July 27 comes at a time of heightened political tensions, with Vice-President Sara Duterte in the middle of an impeachment trial, while voters have also been roiled by a corruption scandal tied to bogus flood-control projects. AFP
