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Bomb Blasts Hurt at Least 32 at Philippine Boxing Match


Leyte, Philippines
Leyte, Philippines

Philippine government officials say at least 32 people were injured Wednesday when two bombs exploded during an amateur boxing match in the central province of Leyte.

A provincial police official said sixteen of the wounded were admitted for treatment at various hospitals while the remaining victims were treated and released. At least ten of the victims were children between the ages of 7 and 15 years-old.

Police are trying to identify the attackers and no one has claimed responsibility.

Communists guerrillas have established a presence in Leyte province, about 610 kilometers southeast of the capital of Manila, but there were no immediate signs they or any other militant groups were involved.

President Rodrigo Duterte has warned of an infiltration of Islamic State (IS) militants into the Philippines if military campaigns to oust IS militants from Iraq and Syria are successful.

Dueterte has said the southern portion of the Philippines is particularly vulnerable to the influence of IS since only a small stretch of sea separates it from other, mostly Muslim areas of the Philippines, and the other predominately Muslim countries of Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia.

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