Van bomb kills atleast 10 in Southern Philippines

Cotabato : Ten people, including troops and civilians, were killed when a bomb in a van blew up at an army checkpoint in the southern Philippines Tuesday. The powerful explosion, claimed by the Islamic State group, occurred after soldiers and pro-government militiamen stopped the vehicle just after dawn to search it.

One soldier, five militiamen and four civilians were killed on the outskirts of the mainly Christian city of Lamitan, which is on the predominantly Muslim island of Basilan. The van driver, a suspected member of the Abu Sayyaf militant group, also died, Philippine military spokesman Colonel Edgard Arevalo told reporters in Manila. He said government forces had been on heightened alert after receiving reports that extremists planned to plant improvised explosives around the island.

“We can just imagine the tragedy that this would bring to the people of Basilan had we not stopped them at the checkpoint,” he said. Authorities earlier said at least five people died in the blast. Basilan is a stronghold of the notorious Abu Sayyaf kidnap-for-ransom group.