Gunfire, blasts hit Philippine casino
Terror ties doubted
Gunshots and explosions erupted after midnight in a hotel and casino complex near Manila’s airport, sending hundreds fleeing into darkened streets early Friday in what police said was an attack by a lone gunman with no apparent links to terrorism.
A Filipino operative for the Islamic State group, in a quick communique, immediately took responsibility for the attack. But police cast doubt on any such links.
It was not immediately clear if anyone was killed in the attack or even if it had concluded.
The violence unfolded as Muslim militants aligned with the Islamic State group fended off government forces for a tenth day in the southern city of Marawi. That unrest had sparked fears that the militants might attack elsewhere to divert the focus of thousands of troops trying to quell the siege.
Gen. Ronald Dela Rosa, national police chief in the Philippines, said there was no concrete evidence that the attack was terrorism. He said one gunman was behind the attack and was still at large more than two hours after it began.
The gunman stole gambling chips, shot an LED monitor and
set gambling tables ablaze by pouring gasoline on them, Dela Rosa said. But he said the assailant did not fire at people he met.
It was not clear how the gunman smuggled enough gasoline into the crowded casino to cause explosions and what prompted Dela Rosa to rule out terrorism so quickly.