A member of a Daesh-linked militant group has been arrested in connection with the bombing of a Catholic Mass in southern Philippines, according to a military commander. The man, identified as Jafar Gamo Sultan, was detained during a hunt for four suspects believed to be behind the attack on worshippers in Marawi, the country’s largest Muslim city, which was besieged by militants in 2017.
Four people were killed and 50 wounded in the bombing last Sunday, which was later claimed by Daesh. Surveillance footage appeared to show Sultan carrying the explosive device hidden in a bag into the Mindanao State University gymnasium, where worshippers had gathered for the service, said Brig-Gen Yegor Rey Barroquillo.
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One of Sultan’s relatives, a man called “Omar”, is also wanted over the attack. Sultan was arrested during an operation on Wednesday, the same day that police identified two other men, Kadapi Mimbesa and Arsani Membisa, as suspects. All four men belonged to the Dawlah Islamiyah-Maute group and were suspected of being “part of a cell” that carried out the attack, Barroquillo said.
The military has described the bombing as a possible revenge attack for their deadly operations against militant groups in the region. Militant attacks on buses, Catholic churches, and public markets have been a feature of decades-long unrest in the region. Manila signed a peace pact with the nation’s largest rebel group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, in 2014, ending their deadly armed rebellion. However, smaller bands of fighters opposed to the peace deal remain, including militants professing allegiance to Daesh. Communist rebels also operate in the region.
The arrest of Sultan and the identification of other suspects is seen as a significant step in the investigation into the bombing. Authorities are continuing their efforts to dismantle militant groups and maintain peace and security in the region.
