Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, December 4) — The United States and Israel have condemned the deadly bombing at the Mindanao State University (MSU) in Marawi City on Sunday.
In a statement, the State Department said it “condemns in the strongest terms the horrific terrorist attack” and that it was “in close contact with our Philippine partners and stands with the people of the Philippines in rejecting this act of violence.”
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has blamed foreign terrorists for the blast which killed four people during a Sunday morning Catholic service at a gymnasium inside the MSU campus.“We mourn those killed in the attack, and our thoughts are with the injured,” the State Department’s statement said.
READ: Marcos condemns Marawi blast ‘perpetrated by foreign terrorists’
In a separate statement, the Embassy of Israel in Manila also denounced the attack.
“Israel is in solidarity with the Philippine government and Filipino people in face of this despicable terrorist attack. Terrorism is a global threat that needs collective unity among nations to safeguard the well-being of all people and communities,” it said amid Israel’s war with militant group Hamas.
Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro also said the bombing had all indications of the involvement of “foreign elements” which authorities are looking into.
