Sunday, September 21, 2008

2004 WGA Superferry 14


The 2004 SuperFerry 14 bombing on February 27, 2004, resulted in the sinking of the ferry SuperFerry 14 and the deaths of 116 people in the Philippines' deadliest terrorist attack and the world's deadliest terrorist attack at sea.

The 10,192-ton ferry sailed out of Manila for Cagayan de Oro City via Bacolod City and Iloilo City with about 900 passengers and crew. A television set containing an 8-pound (4 kilograms) TNT bomb had been placed on board. 90 minutes out of port, the bomb exploded. 63 people were killed immediately and 53 were missing and presumed dead.

Despite claims from various terrorist groups, the blast was initially thought to have been an accident, caused by a gas explosion. However, after divers righted the ferry five months after it sank, they found evidence of a bomb blast. A man named Redondo Cain Dellosa also admitted to planting the bomb on board for the Abu Sayyaf guerrilla group.


President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo announced on October 11, 2004, that investigators had concluded that the explosion had been caused by a bomb. She said six suspects had been arrested in connection with the bombing and that the masterminds, Khadaffy Janjalani and Abu Sulaiman, were still at large. It was believed that Abu Sayyaf bombed Superferry 14 because the company that owned it, WG&A, did not comply with a letter demanding USD $1million in protection money.


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