Date: 27 February 2004

Location: Manila Bay, Philippines

Type of event: terrorism

Description:

A bomb exploded on a ferry en route from Manila to Bacolod, Philippines, causing a fire. The bomb, a 4 kg of TNT planted inside a television, exploded shortly before 1:00 AM local time, about 2 hours into the voyage, while many passengers were sleeping. Of 900 people aboard, at least 118 were killed and 9 injured. The Abu Sayyaf group claimed responsibility; the group had previously demanded $1 million in protection money from the shipowners. The Philippine government initially attributed the fire to accidental causes. Two group members were arrested in March, and four others were later arrested. The government did not acknowledge a bombing as the source of the fire until November.

Consequences: 118 killed, 9 injured

References:

• BBC, "Bomb cause Philippine ferry fire," 11 Oct. 2004, BBC News, on line [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3732356.stm].
• BBC, "Confusion over Manila ferry dead," 1 March 2004, BBC News, on line [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3521671.stm].
• Goodenough, Patrick, "Philippines concedes terrorists caused ferry disaster," 12 Oct. 2004, CNSNews.com, on line [http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewForeignBureaus.asp?Page=%5CForeignBureaus%5Carchive%5C200410%5CFOR20041012c.html].
• MIPT, "Abu Sayyaf group (ASG) attacked transportation target (Feb. 27, 2004, Philippines)," 2004, MIPT, on line [http://www.tkb.org/Incident.jsp?incID=19885].

© 2017 by Wm. Robert Johnston.
Last modified 26 November 2017.
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