Abu Sayyaf eyed in 3rd Sulu bridge bombing

Suspected members of the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf bombed a bridge in Patikul town in Sulu province late Thursday night but no one was reported injured in the blast, a military spokesman said Friday. In a text message, Armed Forces Western Mindanao Command (Wesmincom) spokesperson Major Ramon David Hontiveros said the suspects bombed the Tangan-Tangan Bridge in Brgy. Taung around 11 p.m., causing partial damage to half of the bridge. But the bridge remains passable to any vehicle, Hontiveros said. He said combat units have been deployed to pursue the bombers, who he said are probably Abu Sayyaf bandits. "Yan yung initial suspects na kino-consider natin (They are the initial suspects that we are considering)," Hontiveros said in a phone interview. "Sa ngayon hindi muna siguro natin i-discuss yung iba kasi most logical yung Abu Sayyaf so far (Right now we're not discuss other suspects first because it's the most logical to suspect it's the Abu Sayyaf)." Hontiveros said they have yet to identify the kind of bomb used by the suspects, although he said it was probably an improvised explosive device. Sulu is widely perceived to be the stronghold of the Abu Sayyaf, which has been tagged as responsible for several other bombings, kidnappings, and other crimes in the past. The incident was the third attack on bridges in Sulu by the bandit group this month alone. The first was the October 2 bombing of the Talatak Bridge in Brgy. Bato-Bato in Indanan town, while the second was the bombing of the Lagtoh Bridge in Talipao town last October 17. Hontiveros said they view these attacks as an attempt to paralyze the military's movement in the province. "We've always considered paralyzing our troops' transport capability as one of their (Abu Sayyaf) objectives," he said. Hontiveros added that the military is on alert against any widescale attack that might be perpetuated by the bandits. - with reports from Johanna Camille Sisante, GMANews.TV