New blast in southern Philippines wounds three

MANILA, Oct 15 (Reuters) Three people were wounded when a powerful blast rocked a national police camp in the southern Philippines today evening, hours after a bomb went off in a public market on Mindanao island, an army spokesman said.

Last week, seven people were killed and more than 30 wounded when three explosive devices fashioned from 81-mm mortar rounds went off in three urban centres also on the southern island of Mindanao, blamed by the authorities on radical Muslim militants.

Lieutenant Colonel Bartolome Bacarro said the explosion happened around (1630 IST) in front of a hostel used by police officers on the southwestern island of Jolo, where about 6,000 troops have been fighting militants since August. 1.

''Our troops are helping the police investigate the incident,'' Bacarro told reporters.

Hours earlier, an improvised bomb went off at a public market in Pagadian City on Mindanao island, causing minor damages but no injuries. A second explosive device was also found in the same area.

The explosive used in Pagadian market was different from those used in last week's bombings in Cotabato City, Makilala and Tacurong, all on Mindanao island, Chief Inspector Oscar Buenaobra, chief of police, told reporters.

He said bombs last week were detonated by mobile phones but those found in the market used timing devices.

Buenaobra said a garbage man found an explosive device made from a round of B40 rocket propelled grenade inside a trash bin three hours before it was timed to go off. Bomb experts defused it two hours after it was discovered.

While the bomb was being disarmed, another device made from an M79 grenade exploded in the same area but caused no injuries because soldiers and police officers had cordoned off the market.

''We're lucky because these devices were found earlier,'' said Buenaobra. ''These bombs could have killed many people because the market is packed on Sundays.'' Buenaobra said it would be premature to speculate that the Islamic militants from Abu Sayyaf, suspected to have carried out last week's bombings, could be involved in the market attack.

Abu Sayyaf, the smallest and most violent of four Muslim rebel groups in the Philippines, has been sheltering members of JI (Jemaah Islamiah -- a militant group that seeks an islamic superstate in parts of southeast Asia and Australia).

Around 6,000 troops, backed by US advisers, have been trying since August 1. to flush them out.

Last month, security officials warned Abu Sayyaf could launch bomb attacks in major urban centres in the south in retaliation for more offensives.

The Philippines, a largely Catholic country, is fighting communist and Muslim insurgencies, which have killed more than 160,000 people since the late 1960s.

REUTERS LL RN2051