Terrorism suspected in Manila blast

A blast in a busy upscale Manila shopping center killed at least eight people Friday and injured more than 100 in what the country’s national security chief said was a militant bomb attack.

“This is definitely an act of terrorism, although we have not yet pinpointed what group is responsible for it,” said Norberto Gonzales, the national security advisor.

Muslim insurgents in the southern Philippines frequently bomb civilian targets, but such attacks are rare in Manila, the Philippine capital. Authorities citing intelligence reports recently warned that terrorists were plotting attacks in the capital.

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo called for national unity and urged Filipinos to be on the lookout for further attacks. Arroyo ordered the police and armed forces to go on the “highest alert” and 2,000 extra police officers were deployed in the capital.

As medical teams treated scores of wounded, three nearby hospitals reportedly received death threats.

“I warn those who seek to exploit this incident to destabilize our government for their selfish political motives,” Arroyo said in a televised address from Malacanang Palace.

Gabriela Women’s Party, one of numerous groups pressuring Arroyo to step down over allegations of corruption, pointed the finger of suspicion for the blast at her government.

The group issued a statement “to express our alarm and suspicion over the impeccable timing of the incident in the light of snowballing calls for Mrs. Arroyo to resign.”

The explosion at an entrance to Glorieta Mall, in Manila’s financial district, occurred when the shopping center was crowded during lunchtime. The mall is near several five-star hotels popular with foreign tourists and business travelers.

Rescue crews searched into the night for any victims who might be trapped under debris on the three damaged floors of the mall.

Cellphone video shot by a survivor seconds after the explosion, and broadcast on television, showed the shopping center’s broad walkways filled with a dark haze of smoke and dust.

The explosion caused extensive damage, leaving a large crater and spraying pedestrians, cars and trucks with shattered glass, large chunks of concrete and strips of metal.

Police initially thought that a natural gas tank in a restaurant had exploded, but an accidental cause was soon ruled out because of the location of the explosion near a mall entrance.

The force was so powerful that two women, one of whom was pregnant, were thrown against a taxi, witnesses said. Both were killed.

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paul.watson@latimes.com

Special correspondent Vanzi reported from Manila and Times staff writer Watson from Jakarta, Indonesia. Special correspondent Al Jacinto in Zamboanga City, Philippines, contributed to this report.