Blast kills one, injures 10 in Philippine south

Manila, June 8: A powerful blast ripped through a commuter bus at a crowded public market in the Philippine south, killing one person and injuring 10, a radio station said today, a week after the US embassy warned of such attacks.

Witnesses said the bus driver was killed while an undetermined number of people were brought to a nearby hospital when a crude bomb went off at about 1 pm [local time] today in Matalam town on the island of Mindanao.

''People panicked and ran for cover after an explosion inside a bus waiting for passengers at the market,'' said a local radio station, quoting witnesses being interviewed at the blast site.

On Monday, soldiers defused a crude bomb left inside a packed commuter bus in Maguindanao province, also on Mindanao. Last week, the US embassy in Manila warned its citizens of bomb plots in Kidapawan and Makilala towns on Mindanao.

Reuters>