At 8:45am last Sunday, a bomb exploded during Mass near the Cathedral of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in the southern Philippines. It shattered windows and ripped pews to smithereens. As soldiers rushed to help, a second bomb detonated outside the cathedral compound, hurling “human remains and debris across a town square fronting the church”, according to one report. The attack killed at least 20 people – 15 civilians and five soldiers – and injured 111 others. ISIS claimed responsibility.
The bombing is a grim reminder that, while ISIS may no longer control swathes of territory in Syria and Iraq, it is apparently still capable of inspiring deadly attacks around the world. Speaking at World Youth Day in Panama hours after the bombing, Pope Francis expressed his “strongest reprobation for this episode of violence which is once again plunging the Christian community into mourning”.
