Abu Sayyaf tagged behind bombing attack in Zamboanga

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Xinhua) - Police and military authorities today tagged the Abu Sayyaf group as behind the deadly bombing attack yesterday that killed two people and injured 54 others in Zamboanga City.

The city mayor Maria Isabelle Climaco-Salazar revealed the result of the investigation and assessment provided by the police and military on the blast.

She said the police disclosed that the attack was related with the botched attempt of the Abu Sayyaf group to spring out 57 of their detained comrades in a local prison facility here last Monday where the group was supposed to stage bombings to divert the authorities' attention.

Police said the terrorists used incendiary type of explosive to draw civilians and the primary bomb to create mass casualties. Most of the people killed and injured were the ones who came to see the burning car that exploded later.

Salazar believed the aim of the terrorists was to divert and destabilize the government for the group to stage the rescue.

Police and military bomb experts confirmed that the Abu Sayyaf group used a car bomb during the attack Friday.

Authorities have already traced the car to be registered in Davao but the group used other plate number to elude and confuse the authorities.

Police and military forces have also raided a safehouse but failed to arrest any suspect.