PH condemns terrorist attacks in Indonesia

THE PHILIPPINES condemned the bomb and gun attacks in Jakarta, Indonesia, yesterday that left at least six people dead.

Assistant Secretary Charles Jose, spokesperson for the DFA, said there were no reports of Filipinos being injured in the attacks.

“The Philippines strongly condemns the attacks in Jakarta in the morning of Jan. 14 that claimed the lives of innocent people. We stand by in solidarity with our Indonesian brothers and sisters in this time of tragedy,” the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said in a statement.

‘Emerging threat’

“The Philippine Embassy in Jakarta is closely monitoring the situation and is in contact with Indonesian authorities,” Jose said.

Philippine security forces expressed concern over an “emerg- ing threat” of terrorism after the attacks in Jakarta.

In a joint statement issued yesterday, the Philippine National Police and the Armed Forces of the Philippines urged the public to be more vigilant and help them deal with security threats.

“Our security forces are well aware of the emerging threat and have been conducting operations to prevent terror acts anywhere in the country,” they said.

Chief Supt. Wilben Mayor, spokesperson for the PNP, and Brig. Gen. Restituto Padilla, spokesperson for the AFP, urged people to observe their communities for any indication of threat to public safety.

“With our collective efforts, we can make a difference in securing our people from any terror acts. That is the Filipino spirit of bayanihan,” they said, using the Filipino word for community spirit.

Padilla said there had been no recent specific threats picked up by the authorities in the Philippines.

The military, however, is on heightened alert after the Jakarta attacks, he said.

Local terrorist groups

“The agencies forming the security sector maintain a proactive stance to prevent such incidents,” he added.

He said the police and the military continued to monitor the “usual threats from local terrorist groups,” such as the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) and the Abu Sayyaf.

The BIFF and the Abu Sayyaf have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State jihadi group that has seized swaths of Iraq and Syria.

The military has said that both groups had in the past sheltered foreign militants fleeing prosecution for the 2002 bombings in Bali, Indonesia, that killed 202 people, mostly Australian tourists.