Mindanao bombings just a feint?

Sixteen people have been killed in a spate of bombings in Mindanao in the past two weeks. The cost in human lives is alarming enough, but the attacks could be the harbinger of a bigger threat that Philippine security officials must confront squarely.

The Manila Times has come across information that implicates a rogue group of Muslim militants in the deadly blasts in Cagayan de Oro and Cotabao cities. It appears that the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) has been recruiting trainees to make bombs and to carry out “test missions” to apply what they have learned.