ICC Note: Islamic extremist group’s bombing at a local internet café claims the lives of two Christian teenagers. Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, the group of Islamic militants linked to the attack, are responsible for multiple other recent attacks this year. Including the bombing of St. Anthony’s Catholic cathedral.

09/05/2018 Philippines (World Watch Monitor) – A bomb explosion in a town in the southern Philippines on 2 September claimed the lives of an 18-year-old catechist (he taught the Christian faith in public schools in his free time) and his 15-year-old cousin, UCA Catholic news agency reports.

The perpetrators had targeted an internet café in the town of Insulan in Sultan Kudarat province. The blast that killed Jun Mark Luda and Marialyn Luda also injured 14 people.

Local schools remained closed yesterday (3 September) for security reasons.

Sister Alice Original of the Oblates of Notre Dame described Jun Mark Luda as “an active catechist”.

“He was smart and talented. His jolliness was contagious. We are saddened by his death,” said parishioner Josephine Patosa, who added that the attacks in the region “destroy the harmony between Muslims and Christians.”

The perpetrators are thought to be “an extremist group opposed to a peace deal with Manila”, according to UCA news agency. Army commander Maj. Gen. Cirilito Sobejana blamed the attack on the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF), which has pledged allegiance to the so-called Islamic State.

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