Three dead in Philippines bus station blast

A home-made bomb has ripped through a bus terminal in the southern Philippine city of Cotabato, killing three people and injuring 15 others, police said.

About half of the casualties were children, including a boy who died after being rushed to hospital, police Senior Superintendent Panares Adap said. Two adults were also killed.

Supt Panares said he did not believe the attack was politically motivated.

Another spokesman, Senior Inspector Wally Casuyo, said an unidentified man dumped a bag containing the device at the terminal, and police later received an anonymous warning.

It went off before the area could be cleared.

Insp Casuyo said the motive was probably extortion, as the bus company had been receiving letters from armed groups demanding money.

The central region of the southern island of Mindanao has been hit by seven bombings this year, many of them blamed on Muslim extremists with ties to the Jemaah Islamiah or Al Qaeda terrorist networks.

Earlier this month a device went off in a crowded market in nearby Tacurong town, killing eight people.

Authorities blame Jemaah Islamiah for that attack.

- AFP