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While the environmentalists and climate change cultists were freezing their butts off worrying about saving the planet because of global warming and atmospheric pollution caused by carbon dioxide, the planet itself didn't seem to want to be saved. Or maybe the planet has to destroy itself to save itself. Or something. Anyway, off in the Philippines, Mount Mayon volcano has had a total of 248 volcanic quakes and tremors since Monday. In a statement, Phivolcs director Renato Solidum explained that 50 of these events were explosion-type, wherein minor explosions produced volcanic earthquakes and tremors. "However, only seven were observed during...

A powerful political clan allied to the Philippine president, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, is suspected of masterminding an election massacre that left 57 people dead, police said today. Four local commanders, including one provincial police chief, have already been relieved of their duties and confined to camp while being investigated for what the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, called a "heinous crime". As the full extent of the carnage emerged, domestic and international pressure is growing on Arroyo to find and punish those responsible. In her first comments on the killings the president, who has declared a state of emergency in Maguindanao...

Suspected Muslim guerrillas detonated a bomb near a Roman Catholic cathedral in the southern Philippines on Sunday, killing at least five people and wounding 46. The bomb exploded outside the Immaculate Conception cathedral in Cotabato city as churchgoers were attending Mass. Two people were killed instantly in the attack and three others, including a militiaman, later died in hospitals, military officials said. Among the wounded were six soldiers and militiamen who were in an army van that passed by the cathedral when the device, fashioned from a mortar round, exploded, Cotabato city Mayor Muslimin Sema said. The improvised explosive, which...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0MFEFnRJC4k

Top Philippine court rejects Muslim autonomy deal By OLIVER TEVES MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The Philippine Supreme Court threw out on Tuesday a proposed accord to grant minority Muslims expanded autonomy after Christian protests and renewed fighting convinced the government to abandon the deal. The court had already blocked the planned Aug. 5 signing of the agreement after Christian politicians in the main southern region of Mindanao, scene of a decades-long Muslim rebellion, claimed it violated the constitution and could lead to the partition of the Philippines. The move angered Moro Islamic Liberation Front guerrillas, who went on a rampage...

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 15, 2008 (AFP) - Somali pirates hijacked a Philippines-managed bulk carrier with 21 sailors aboard on Wednesday, a maritime watchdog said. Noel Choong, head of the International Maritime Bureau's (IMB) piracy reporting centre in Kuala Lumpur, told AFP pirates boarded the vessel at 0344 GMT in the notorious Gulf of Aden.

Manila - The Philippine military lamented Wednesday the unabated attacks by Muslim separatist rebels in the country's troubled south despite a ceasefire, saying it showed the weakness of the guerrilla leadership to control its forces. Armed forces chief General Alexander Yano said that in the two months from May 1 to June 30, rebels from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) initiated 40 attacks against military outposts and eight attacks on power facilities. "These attacks may be ineffective because they have not really inflicted casualties but we feel that this is a sign of weakness of MILF leadership," he said....

A group of Filipinos and Filipino-Americans is preparing a 500 million-dollar class suit against ABC Network in the United States in response to a slur against Philippine medical schools and Filipino medical professionals, aired in the premiere episode of the fourth season of “Desperate Housewives”. In that episode, the character Susan Mayer (played by actress Teri Hatcher) questioned the credentials of her gynecologist over a disputed diagnosis. Mayer said she wanted to check the doctor’s diploma to make sure it didn’t come “from some med school in the Philippines”. The class suit is being filed by the Northern California chapter...

The Philippine government is deploying extra troops to the south after some of the bloodiest clashes with militants left more than 50 people dead. The military said it had lost 26 soldiers and killed around 31 militants in three days of fighting on the volatile island of Jolo. Thursday saw the heaviest toll after militants ambushed a military convoy. The military said the arrival of extra forces would bring to 4,000 the number of troops stationed in the area. Government troops, backed by US military trainers, have been fighting Islamist militants affiliated to various groups who have been hiding in...

Islamist terrorists have long been at war with the United States and frequently have proclaimed their determination to win the war. In fact, they see their enemies' unwillingness to acknowledge this war as an act of cowardice. If their enemies refuse to wear the mantle of warrior, terrorists assume that they are weak, lacking in honor, and spiritually infe­rior—and the notion that their enemy is vulnerable emboldens them. Failing to acknowledge that we are at war only encourages the enemy to be more warlike.Conclusive proof that terrorists are at war with us requires little more than reading their own words....

MANILA (AFP) - A jobless man was shot dead by a security guard for singing out of tune in a Philippine karaoke bar, police said Thursday. Romy Baligula, 29, was halfway through his song on Tuesday night in a bar in San Mateo town, east of Manila, when 43-year-old security guard Robilito Ortega yelled that he was out of tune. As Baligula ignored his comments and continued singing, Ortega pulled out his revolver and shot him in the chest. Senior Superintendent Felipe Rojas said Baligula died instantly. The security guard was detained by an off-duty policeman shortly after the shooting....

The heads of seven men who were kidnapped by the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf group on southern Jolo island have been delivered in sacks to the Philippine army, officials say. The men - six road workers and a factory worker – were seized at gunpoint in two separate incidents on Monday near the town of Parang.

MANILA -- The heads of seven men who were kidnapped by the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf group on southern Jolo island were delivered to a Philippine Army detachment on Thursday, officials said. The men - six road project workers and a dried-fish factory worker - were snatched at gunpoint in two separate incidents Monday near the town of Parang. Major General Ruben Rafael, commander of military forces on Jolo, said a group of civilians were ordered to take the heads to Parang by Abu Sayyaf commander Albader Parad, who operates in Jolo's mountainous townships of Indanan and Parang. Jolo Governor Ben...

Globally, remittances make up about $230bn Money sent home by Filipinos working overseas last year totalled a record $12.8bn (£6.5bn), the Philippines' central bank has said.The remittances - a 20% rise on 2005 - account for about 10% of the country's economy, the bank added. Most of the eight million overseas workers are in the US or Middle East. According to the World Bank, the Philippines is the fifth-largest recipient of foreign remittances behind India, China, Mexico and France. It has forecast that Filipinos will send home about $14.1bn this year. Their remittances play an increasingly significant role in...

MANILA, Philippines - Philippine troops battled al-Qaida-linked Muslim extremists in the southern Philippines and officials were trying to determine Wednesday if a key leader was killed, the military said. Army soldiers fought 60 Abu Sayyaf members in mountainous Talipao town on Jolo island on Monday, military spokesman Lt. Col. Bartolome Bacarro said. Talipao is 590 miles south of Manila. The clash with the group headed by Abu Sulaiman, a senior Abu Sayyaf leader on a U.S. list of terrorists, also left two soldiers wounded. Bacarro said Sulaiman is believed to have been fatally shot. "All indications are it's Sulaiman," Bacarro...

The United States military on Thursday (Friday in Manila) said it has canceled joint war games with the Philippine military after a dispute with Philippine authorities over custody of a US serviceman convicted of raping a Filipina. A report on the New York Times said Admiral William J. Fallon, commander of US forces in the Pacific, said he also will halt aid and reconstruction programs carried out by the American military in the Philippines until he is confident the troops’ legal rights will be protected under the Visiting Forces Agreement. Under the VFA, US authorities would retain custody of American...

Tawi-Tawi: The army has captured a suspected leader of a local terror group in the southern Philippines, officials told Gulf News. The suspected Abu Sayyaf leader was captured in Lamyon, Bongao, Tawi-Tawi a week ago, said sources from the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police who requested anonymity. The Abu Sayyaf leader has a "hefty prize" on his head, said the officials who refused to identify the leader. Troopers are still pursuing three more Abu Sayyaf men believed to be hiding in the island province of Tawi-Tawi, said the officials. The arrested leader and those who...

Holy Week attacks foiled; Sayyaf explosives seized ZAMBOANGA CITY: Authorities foiled a plan by the Abu Sayyaf to bomb this southern Philippine city during the Holy Week, following the seizure of hundreds of bomb components and explosives in separate raids in suspected hideouts, the military said. Col. Edgardo Gidaya, chief of Task Force Zamboanga, said concerned citizens tipped the military and police about the presence of suspicious persons occupying safe houses in Barangays Rio Hondo and Baliwasan. Gidaya said the raids were carried out Thursday at 9 a.m. but the terrorists had fled before the troops arrived. The raiding team...

Nearly 61 years after surviving a living nightmare, it's still not easy for Adolfo Celaya to talk about what he endured that night in 1945. Celaya, who grew up in Barrio Viejo, was an 18-year-old sailor on the USS Indianapolis. He worked in the ship's belly, where he helped feed oil into the vessel's four giant boilers. But on the night of July 30, Celaya was on the ship's deck in the Philippine Sea with his Tucson buddy, Santos Peña. Two Japanese torpedoes struck the cruiser. The Indy split and sank within 12 minutes, taking 300 of the 1,196 men...

USS ESSEX, At Sea (NNS) -- Adm. William J. Fallon, commander, U.S. Pacific Command, visited USS Essex (LHD 2) March 2, to thank the crew and embarked 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) for their hard work during the Leyte humanitarian assistance, disaster relief efforts while the ship was underway off the Philippine coast. Essex, commanded by Capt. Martin J. Keaney, along with USS Harpers Ferry (LSD 49) and elements of the 31st MEU, were diverted from the previously planned Exercise Balikatan 06 to help in the relief and recovery efforts after a devastating landslide covered a village in the southern...

Angry lawmakers in Senate, House move to terminate VFA Jan 19, 2006 By Philip C. Tubeza, Michael Lim Ubac Inquirer THE CONCURRENT resolution calling for the termination of the RP-US Visiting Forces Agreement is ready, and is expected to be approved today by the Legislative Oversight Committee on the VFA (Lovfa), lawmakers said yesterday. The two-page resolution calls for the termination of the VFA and its renegotiation into a Status of Forces Agreement (Sofa) that would allow Philippine custody of US nationals charged with crimes in local courts. The resolution read: "It appears that the US government has failed to...

July 1, 2005: Over the last few days, police arrested 24 Islamic radicals suspected of participating in the October 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 people. So far, 35 people have been convicted of involvement in the Bali attack. About have the 24 were preparing to leave the country, to hide in terrorist bases in the Philippines. These latest arrests involved people thought to be responsible for other terror attacks as well.

IF FILIPINOS are tearfully and unabashedly storming heaven with prayers to save Pope John Paul II, it is because they hold close to their hearts the man who gifted them with not one but two papal visits in his long pontificate. He would have loved to make a third visit, but illness and terrorist threats prevented him from doing so. "We will always remember him with love for those two papal visits," said Fr. Fausto Gomez, OP, former dean of theology of the Ecclesiastical Faculties of the University of Santo Tomas. Gomez called the visits "incredible," explaining that the first...

FORT HUACHUCA - In preparation for Bataan Memorial Death March later this month, the Boy Scouts of America Catalina Council's Troop 431 hoofed along post for about 22 miles Saturday morning. Eleven of the troop's scouts participated in Saturday's training. Troop 431 has participated in the Bataan memorial march for seven years now, but seven years is longer than the stipulated Boy Scout tenure. For example, Jake Oliver, an Eagle Scout, has marched in White Sands for four years, he said. The 26-mile memorial march has been annually staged in New Mexico's White Sands Missile Range since 1989, in remembrance...

MANILA (AFP) - Nearly one thousand American and Filipino soldiers on Sunday began joint military exercises aimed at improving cooperation against terrorist and other attacks. The two-week exercises are to be held in military camps in Luzon. Some 300 US troops and 650 Filipino soldiers are taking part. The maneuvers are aimed at improving joint planning and enhancing capabilities "against armed attacks, including threats from terrorist groups, as well as readiness to respond to natural disasters," the US embassy said. The Philippines is a US ally in its global war on terrorism, and small numbers of US military advisers have...

COTABATO, Philippines: At least 14 people were killed and 59 others injured in a bomb attack in a public market in the southern Philippines Sunday, the military said. Unidentified men lobbed the explosive near a restaurant at the South Public Market in the city of General Santos, the military said, adding the motive could be a feud among traders and vendors at the site. The military said three were killed on the spot, while other fatalities were reported by two other hospitals. Fifty-nine were wounded in the military's latest tally. Several armed groups, including Muslim separatists, operate in the southern...

  Link: St. Philippine Duchesne   -   Two picturesLink: The History of Sacred Heart Academy    -   and St. Philippine DuchesneLink: The Shrine of St. Philippine Duchesne   -   619 N. Second Street St. Charles, MO 63301 (636) 946-6127 Link: Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Washington, D.C.   -    In 1999, through the work of Ann Wilson Brown, Monsignor Jerome Wilkerson, and Joan Klutho, a white marble statue of the saint was installed in The Hall of American Saints, within the Crypt ChurchLink: History of the Jesuits in America   -   Pictures, letters and more. Link: Vatican News...

November 18, 2004Thursday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time Reading IRev 5:1-10 I, John, saw a scroll in the right hand of the one who sat on the throne.It had writing on both sides and was sealed with seven seals.Then I saw a mighty angel who proclaimed in a loud voice,"Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?"But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earthwas able to open the scroll or to examine it.I shed many tears because no one was found worthyto open the scroll or to examine it.One of the...

Tuesday July 13, 10:56 AM Philippine Shares Dn Early As Mkt Eyes Iraq Hostage Devts MANILA (Dow Jones)--Philippine shares are lower early Tuesday on profit-taking, possibly triggered by concerns about the implications for the country if it pulls out its small contingent from Iraq to save a Filipino hostage from execution, traders said. At 0238 GMT, the 30-company Philippine Stock Exchange Index was below its 1580 support at 1577.74, down 8.51 points, or 0.5%, after Monday's 0.4% fall. Blue chips are weighing on the main index. Among them, Ayala Land, down 0.20 peso ($1=PHP55.874), or 3.6%, at PHP5.40, and Philippine...

MANILA (Reuters) - The United States has asked Manila to extradite one of six suspected Muslim militants arrested last week on suspicion of planning bomb attacks, believing he beheaded a U.S. tourist in 2001, Philippine officials said on Tuesday. They said the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation had requested that Alhamser Limbong, alias Kosovo, be tried in a U.S. court for the abduction of three American nationals from a beach resort in May 2001 and the beheading of one of them. "They have a photograph of Kosovo on their wanted lists," said government prosecutor Nestro Lazaro. A team of FBI...

U.S. special operations troops have become a key military weapon in the war on terrorism, DoD's top special operations official told U.S. House of Representatives' members here March 11. Special operators are "taking the war to the terrorists before it can be fought on our own soil or that of our allies," Thomas W. O'Connell said in testimony before the House Terrorism, Unconventional Threats and Capabilities Subcommittee. O'Connell is the assistant secretary of defense for special operations and low-intensity conflict. He told House members that special operations forces played a front-line role in routing the Taliban and disrupting al Qaeda's...

TOKYO - World leaders tightened security and issued travel advisories on Friday as they condemned separate suicide bombing attacks five days apart in Istanbul, Turkey, that killed at least 50 people. The bombings — which targeted two synagogues on Saturday and then the British consulate and a London-based bank on Thursday — brought renewed pledges to combat terrorism and calls for new vigilance. Iran's leader said they contradict the teachings of Islam. Japan's Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said the attacks were meant to "throw society into confusion," adding that the world must not give in to such threats. His sentiments...

November 18, 2003Tuesday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time Psalm: Tuesday 49 Reading I Responsorial Psalm Gospel Reading I2 Macc 6:18-31 Eleazar, one of the foremost scribes,a man of advanced age and noble appearance,was being forced to open his mouth to eat pork. But preferring a glorious death to a life of defilement,he spat out the meat,and went forward of his own accord to the instrument of torture,as people ought to do who have the courage to reject the foodwhich it is unlawful to taste even for love of life. Those in charge of that unlawful ritual meal took...

Several Islamic terrorists detained by the Philippines have escaped from jail, police said on Monday. Fathur Rohman Al-Ghozi, the most senior member of the Jemaah Islamiyah terror network in custody in the Philippines, was among a group of terrorists that escaped from prison Monday, police added.

A BOMB exploded in a crowded market today in the latest attack in the troubled southern Philippines. A military official said there were unconfirmed reports of six dead and about 20 injured. The explosion occurred in Koronadal, in South Cotabato province, about 980 kilometres south of Manila, provincial police chief Superintendent Romeo Rufino said. Today was the eve of an annual city celebration. Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Lucero, a military spokesman, said sketchy reports showed six people were killed and about 20 wounded. He said the bomb was left behind in a video game stall. "There are many children among the...

Fifteen communist rebels were killed while three government militiamen were wounded in separate clashes in the Philippines, the military said on Saturday. Troops clashed with about 60 New People's Army (NPA) guerrillas near Pampanga province north of Manila for nine hours until dawn on Saturday, the army's 7th Infantry Dvision commander Major General Alberto Braganza said. "We have recovered two bodies and we believe their casualties could reach up to 15," Braganza said, citing reports on the field and radio intercepts from the rebels. "We are still scouring the area." The firefight occurred near a river and the rebels later...

LifeSite Daily News Thursday January 30, 2003 NEW WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION CHIEF INVOLVED IN POPULATION CONTROL VACCINE SCANDAL GENEVA, January 30, 2003 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Dr. Jong Wook Lee, a relatively unknown World Health Organization (WHO) insider beat out high profile competitors to become the head of the World Health Organization Tuesday. Other candidates for the post included Dr. Julio Frenk Mora - currently Mexico's Minister of Health and Dr. Pascoal Mocumbi - the Prime Minister of Mozambique. However, Lee's work with WHO included being in charge of and weathering one of the most scandalous accusations to be brought against the...

Dear Lord, There's a young man far from home, called to serve his nation in time of war; sent to defend our freedom on some distant foreign shore. We pray You keep him safe, we pray You keep him strong, we pray You send him safely home ... for he's been away so long. There's a young woman far from home, serving her nation with pride. Her step is strong, her step is sure, there is courage in every stride. We pray You keep her safe, we pray You keep her strong, we pray You send her safely home...

ZAMBOANGA - Muslim gunmen seized a Christian couple in southern Philippines and are threatening to kill them unless a ransom is paid, the military reported yesterday. Mr Dodong Dumaguit and his wife, Liezl, were snatched from their house late on Thursday in Sibuco town in Zamboanga del Norte province, the report said. The kidnappers are demanding 120,000 pesos (S$4,000) in payment for the two, accusing them of also engaging in drug pushing. Local Muslim leaders and district officials are negotiating for the couple's release. The military did not say which group was behind the abduction, but the area where the...

ZAMBOANGA: Philippine troops clashed with Abu Sayyaf Muslim guerrillas in the southern island of Jolo, killing at least two in the latest offensive, military officials said on Thursday. A special US-trained force battled the Abu Sayyaf in Indanan late on Wednesday, after which they found the body parts of at least two guerrillas hit by rifle grenades, local army commander Colonel Alexander Aleo said. At least four other of the notorious kidnappers were wounded, he said, and one soldier wounded. The number of casualties could be higher as the gunmen had taken most of their dead and wounded with them,...

BAGUIO, Philippines, Aug 17 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - The spokesman of the communist insurgent movement in the Philippines Saturday, August 17, 2002, called for attacks on U.S. troops and companies in reaction to the U.S. labeling the group a terrorist organization, news agencies reported. Gregorio Rosal, spokesman of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), said the label was a sign of American "preparations for justifying its violation of Philippine sovereignty and launching a war of aggression," against local communist guerrillas. In a statement released in the southern mountain city of Rosal, he said U.S. troops are vulnerable targets...

ZAMBOANGA: Philippine troops shot dead two Abu Sayyaf guerrillas during a raid on a hide-out in the southern island of Basilan, a military official said Monday. But Abu Sayyaf leader Amir Mingkong and the rest of his men escaped during Sunday's raid near Sumisip town, said provincial military chief Colonel Alexander Aleo. The soldiers recovered two dead rebels and a rifle, Aleo told reporters. Military southern command chief Major General Ernesto Carolina said operations were also continuing on the nearby island of Jolo, where an Abu Sayyaf unit controlled by rebel leaders Ghalib Andang, also known as "Commander Robot", and...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Justice Department is planning to announce criminal charges against five Philippine rebels who are linked to al Qaeda in connection with last month's killing of a kidnapped American missionary, federal law enforcement officials say. American missionary Martin Burnham, 42, was killed June 7, but his wife, Gracia, 43, was rescued by Philippine troops in a gun battle with Abu Sayyaf rebels in the Philippine jungle. Filipina nurse Deborah Yap, who was being held captive, was also killed in the clash. The United States has linked Abu Sayyaf to Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda network and...

MANILA, Philippines (AP) - A major battle was under way Friday against the al-Qaida-linked Abu Sayyaf group in the southern Philippines, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo said. Arroyo prefaced a major policy speech on utility reform with a brief statement that troops were going after the group's top two leaders and already had overrun four Abu Sayyaf camps. "We are now having a major battle in Sulu, right in the camp where the Abu Sayyaf was born," Arroyo said. A military source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the fighting was a continuation from a clash Thursday between 200 Philippine army...

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The Philippine military awarded medals Saturday to U.S.-trained troops involved in a gunbattle with the leader of the Muslim extremist Abu Sayyaf rebels, whose still-missing body now has a $1,000 bounty on it. Ensign Christopher Salimbangon (L) is congratulated by Brigadier General Donald Wurster (R) commander for US troops in the Philipines, after being awarded the Gold Cross medal. Salimbagong, took part in the naval assault mission that led to the killing of Abu Sayyaf leader Abu Sabaya. AFP PHOTO/CONRADO MARALIT Abu Sabaya, a notorious leader and spokesman for the al-Qaida linked Abu Sayyaf, was believed...

U.S. Troops to Move Closer to Philippine Combat Zone Mon Jun 3, 7:27 AM ET By Erik de Castro ISABELA, Philippines (Reuters) - The Philippines and the United States agreed Monday to move U.S. special forces closer to combat areas in the country's south in a stepped-up manhunt for Muslim guerrillas linked to Osama bin Laden (news - web sites). The presidential palace in Manila announced the decision as U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz flew to the southern island of Basilan, stronghold of the Abu Sayyaf guerrillas, and met U.S. troops training Filipino soldiers in counter-terrorism. Delayed military reports...

The Washington Post BUST AND BOOM Six years before the September 11 attacks, Philippine police took down an al Qaeda cell that had been plotting, among other things, to fly explosives-laden planes into the Pentagon---and possibly some skyscrapers Matthew Brzezinski December 30, 2001; Page W9 It was already evening, here on the other side of the international date line, when the first plane struck the North Tower of the World Trade Center. Aida Fariscal had gone to bed early on September 11, only to be awakened by a frantic colleague. "Quick," he instructed, "turn on your television." The footage of...