Death toll in Cotabato store bomb explosion reaches 3

KABACAN, North Cotabato - Two more victims of the powerful bomb blast that rocked this town last week have died, bringing to three the number of fatalities in the attack whose perpetrators are still unknown.

This town's police chief, Chief Inspector Raul Supiter, said Emily Alvarez and Ivy May Cando died while undergoing treatment for shrapnel wounds at local hospitals.

Another victim, Begay Macayanan, is still fighting for his life and doctors have reportedly given him a slim chance of survival. Fourteen others were wounded in the blast.

Supiter said they have yet to validate information on the circumstances behind the bomb explosion inside the Sugni Superstore here which resulted in the instant death of a pregnant woman, a certain Josita Facura.

Senior Superintendent Abelardo Villacorta, Region 12 police intelligence chief, said the North Cotabato police are still gathering vital information on the attack which occurred amid continuing hostilities between state and MILF forces in nearby Carmen town.

Kabacan Mayor Wilfredo Bataga, in a press statement, said a group of MILF rebels opposed to the municipal government's relentless campaign against drug trafficking and extortion could be behind the bombing.

Gov. Emmanuel Piñol, Rep. Anthony Dequiña and other North Cotabato politicians have condemned the attack.

The improvised bomb, probers said, was made of a live round of an 81-mm mortar, a contraption of incendiary chemicals, shredded cast iron and a battery-operated timing device.