Explosive found near Scout camp

Alert Army soldiers foiled what the military believes could have been a terrorist plan to disrupt a camping activity of the Girl Scouts of the Philippines in Isabela over the weekend, a belated military report said.

Reports reaching Camp Aguinaldo said elements of the Army’s 21st Infantry Battalion discovered an explosive, weighing two kilograms, in Samal, Tumauini, Isabela where the Girl Scouts were camping.

The explosive was found just 25 meters away from the campsite, the report said. The soldiers promptly defused the explosive, preventing what could have been a tragic experience for the young Girl Scouts.

The military report, however, failed to mention who could have planted the explosive. There are no known terrorists in Northern Luzon, except the New People’s Army rebels. — Paolo Romero