Pope, MILF condemn Christmas day bombing in Sulu

Pope Benedict XVI has expressed his condemnation of the Christmas day bombing in a chapel in Sulu province where 12 people were injured, including two priests and a nine-year-old girl. The Pope condemned the incident in Sunday’s Angelus where he also criticized a similar act of violence in Nigeria and Pakistan, according to the Catholic news site AsiaNews. “(Our) world continues to be marked by violence, especially against the disciples of Christ. I learned with great sadness of the attack in a Catholic church in the Philippines, while the Christmas Day rites were being celebrated, as well as the attack on Christian churches in Nigeria," AsiaNews quoted the Pope as saying. The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) has condemned the bombing incident in Sulu as well, saying it goes against Islam’s teachings against violence. MILF Committee on Da’wah (Islamic Call) chairman Sheikh Muhammad Muntasir called the act “barbaric and satanic and devoid of any religious ethics." Earth stained with blood During the Angelus with pilgrims gathered at St. Peter’s Square, Pope Benedict XVI lamented that even at Christmas, “the earth was again stained with blood." “Yesterday morning during Christmas Mass for the police in Jolo (Mindanao), a bomb exploded near the altar wounding the priest and five other people," he said. He added that in Jos (Nigeria), seven bombs exploded in the center of the city, leaving 32 dead and 74 wounded. A bomb that was set to explode during midnight mass was defused by police. The earth was again stained with blood in other parts of the world, such as in Pakistan, he added. “I wish to express my heartfelt condolences to the victims of this senseless violence, and I repeat once again the call to abandon the path of hatred to find peaceful solutions to conflicts and gift security and serenity to these dear people," he said. The Pope then referred to Sunday’s feast recalling the Holy Family, “who lived through the dramatic experience of having to flee to Egypt from the murderous rampage of Herod." “Let us remember all those people - especially families - who are forced to flee their homes because of war, violence and intolerance. I invite you therefore to join me in prayer asking the Lord to forcefully move the hearts of men and bring hope, reconciliation and peace," he said. MILF criticizes bombing The MILF’s Muntasir said Islam strictly prohibits violence in any form except on the basis of fighting tumult and oppression, and cited at least three verses in the Qur’an, according to an article posted Monday on the MILF website. The verses include: 1. “Do no evil nor mischief on the (face of the) earth." (2:60); 2. “Let there arise out of you a band of people inviting to all that is good, enjoining what is right, and forbidding what is wrong." (3:104); and 3. “Do good to parents, kinsfolk, orphans, those in need, neighbors who are of kin, neighbors who are strangers, the companion by your side, the wayfarer (ye meet), and what your right hands possess." (4:36). Muntasir said Muslims’ tolerance toward the People of the Book (Christians and Jews) rests primarily on the Qur’an which is the source of guidance for Muslims. He added Allah states that one of His objectives in creating humanity was that they should interact in the best of terms, citing this verse in Qur’an: “O mankind! We created you from a single (pair) of a male and female, and made you into nations and tribes, that ye may know each other (not that ye may despise each other). Verily the most honored of you in the sight of God is (he who is) the most righteous of you. And God has full knowledge and is well acquainted (with all things)." Cops ‘zeroing in’ on perpetrators In Manila, Philippine National Police spokesman Chief Superintendent Agrimero Cruz Jr. on Monday said they continue to gather evidence and testimonies from witnesses. While Cruz declined to name who was responsible, he said the police now have an idea on which group was behind the blast. “Yan iniimbestiga natin. Base sa ebidensya at eyewitness account, sa tingin natin hindi pa pupuwedeng sabihin with certainty kung sino ang may gawa nito, although meron na tayong suspetsa anong grupo may kagagawan ng insidenteng ito," he said in an interview on dzXL radio. (We are still investigating the incident. Based on evidence gathered and eyewitness accounts, we cannot make public our findings for now but we can say we are zeroing in on the group behind the incident.) Meanwhile, radio dzXL reported that the number of casualties in Saturday’s bombing rose to 12. Two of the injured are priests. Police were placed on heightened alert status in areas of Mindanao including Zamboanga, Basilan, Tawi-Tawi, and Zamboanga Sibugay, the dzXL report said. – VVP, GMANews.TV