UN agency suspends aid operations in southern Philippines

Jul 8, 2009, 8:58 GMT

   Manila - The UN World Food Programme (WFP) said Wednesday it was suspending aid operations in the restive southern Philippines following a series of bombings that killed a dozen people.

   WFP deputy country director Alghassim Wurie said the halt in food distribution in the southern region of Mindanao was due to the volatile security situation.

   'Due to the spate of bombings in Cotabato City, Iligan City, Jolo and Maguindanao, we are suspending the travel of our staff to these areas,' he said.

   He added that operations would resume next week if the security situation improves over the weekend.

   The WFP has been distributing rice, beans and vegetable oil to residents displaced by fighting between the military and Muslim separatist rebels in Mindanao since August 2008.

   Security has been tightened in Mindanao after deadly bomb attacks in Cotabato City on Sunday and Iligan City and Jolo island on Tuesday which killed 12 people.

   Almost 100 people were injured in the blasts, two of which occurred near a Catholic church packed with people.

   Authorities blamed members of the separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) for the Cotabato and Iligan blasts, while al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf rebels were blamed for the Jolo attack.

   The MILF is the largest Muslim rebel group fighting for an independent Islamic state in Mindanao. It has been waging its separatist struggle since 1978.

   The Abu Sayyaf has been held responsible for some of the worst terrorist attacks in the country as well as high-profile kidnappings involving foreign hostages.