BACOLOD City – Policemen here are on full alert status following reports of terror attacks allegedly targeting cities and places of worship.
Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Ariel Pico said they have not received any credible information but they are not taking any chances.
“There is a threat months ago but it was not fully validated,” he said.
Pico also pointed out the “full alert” status was made in response to last week’s mall robbery and the current tension within the Vallacar Transit Inc.
“We have made the pro-active decision of assigning police officers in the city’s churches, particularly the San Sebastian Cathedral during mass and other prayer services,” he said.
Pico also said he told Bishop Patricio Buzon and parish priests in the city to adopt tighter security protocol.
“One example is having churchgoers register their names in a logbook similar to what is currently being done in some churches in Luzon,” he said.
Earlier, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) has received an intelligence memo that two Sri Lankan-nationals with links to the Islamic State (ISIS) are planning to conduct attacks on what the IS stated as “crusader” churches in Luzon.
According to AFP, crusader cities is the term used by ISIS in describing target areas to fuel what they call “Bandar Crusade,” or war between Muslim and Christian. While “Crusader Churches” is their generic term for all historic Catholic Churches.
AFP, however, doubts the veracity of the report as the information came out from a Singapore-based newspaper outlet./PN
