Info on suicide bombers behind Jolo attack not yet verified —Lorenzana

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana on Wednesday said information that a pair of foreign suicide bombers was behind the January 27 twin bombings of a cathedral in Jolo, Sulu was unverified.

At a press briefing in Camp Aguinaldo, Lorenzana said he received the same information that a Yemeni couple took part in the attack on the Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Cathedral but added security officials have yet to verify it.

"This is from some report outside. Natanggap ko rin 'yun. May couple bombers na Yemeni," he said.

Lorenzana, however, said investigation is ongoing as to the real perpetrators of the bombing. "The final conclusion is not yet there, it's still being  investigated," he said.

President Rodrigo Duterte, citing the military, on Tuesday said the bombings were conducted by a couple who were both suicide bombers. He said the woman brought the bomb inside the church while the man stayed at the entrance.

The twin blasts killed 21 people, including soldiers, and wounded scores of others.

Lorenzana said the mangled body parts that littered the site of the explosions make it easier to suspect that suicide bombers were involved. In debunking the suicide bombing angle, he noted that no terrorist group has publicly honored a "martyr" yet.

"Kung suicide bombing 'yan, somebody will immediately claim na itong taong 'to naging martyr. Wala pa kaming nakikitang ganun," he said.

Lorenzana said the CCTV footage obtained by investigators shows a certain Kamah, allegedly a member of an Abu Sayyaf-affiliated group, detonating the bomb.

"Kung suicide bombing 'yun, 'di na nila kailangang gumamit ng trigger," he said. 

"We still believe that the bomb was detonated from afar," Lorenzana added.

A joint task force was already established to lead the investigation into the Jolo attack. —KBK, GMA News