Three killed, one injured in shooting incident on poll day in Philippines
May 09, 2022
Manila [Phillipines], May 9 : Three persons were killed and one was injured in a strafing incident near a polling center in Maguindanao province on the election day in the Philippines on Monday.
According to the military, the attackers on board two vans opened fire at the peacekeepers assisting the voting process in Buluan town around 7:25 am local time (2325 GMT), Xinhua News Agency reported.
The victims were reportedly supporters of a local politician running for the post of mayor in the town.
The election body also reported another strafing incident today morning in Sumisip town in Basilan province in the country. However, there were no casualties in the attack.
Earlier in the day, it is reported that at least eight persons were injured in grenade explosions in Maguindanao province on Sunday night, on the eve of the voting.
Police said the explosions hit Datu Unsay town, and another one hit nearby Shariff Aguak town.
So far no group has claimed responsibility for the explosions. Police are looking into the attacks in the areas tagged as "hot spots," Xinhua reported.
Al Jazeera reported that 10 candidates are vying to succeed current President Rodrigo Duterte in the elections.
Over 65.7 million Filipinos will vote on Monday to elect a new president, a new vice president, 12 senators, more than 300 members of the House of Representatives, and over 17,000 local officials, as per the news agency.