According to the Philippine newspaper Manila Bulletin, on July 27 local time, just a few hours before Philippine President Marcos was about to deliver his fifth State of the Nation Address, the Philippine police removed a improvised explosive device near the Senate. Earlier that day, an explosion also occurred near the entrance of the Department of Justice building.
According to a statement released by the Philippine Department of Justice, an explosion occurred near the main entrance of the Department of Justice building on Elmitapa de Fuala Street in Manila at 0:17 on the 27th.
The Philippine Department of Justice stated that there were no reports of casualties. The National Police Explosives Handling Unit of the Philippines rushed to the scene immediately upon receiving notice and began technical inspections. “The situation is now under control, and the offices of the Department of Justice are in a safe condition.”
Currently, police investigators are investigating the source of the explosion, the nature of the explosive material, and related circumstances.
Subsequently, on the morning of the 27th at approximately 8:15 AM, an employee of a towing company discovered suspicious items near Diókno Avenue in the vicinity of the Philippine Senate building, and reported this to the police. The police then dispatched personnel to the scene and confirmed that the items contained suspected explosive device components.
On the morning of the 27th local time, a member of the Philippine National Police explosive disposal team was inspecting a improvised explosive device. The Philippine National Police provided this information to Filipino media.
The police found that the device consisted of a 9-volt battery, a fuse, a clock, and a plastic container filled with brown powdery substance, which was suspected to be explosive material.
The Philippine National Capital Region Police Office stated in its report that the police explosive disposal team implemented appropriate “safe disposal procedures” and used “manual entry techniques” to inspect and dismantle suspected improvised explosive devices. The entire disposal process was completed without any accidents.
It is reported that at 4 p.m. local time on the 27th, Marcos will deliver his fifth State of the Union address at the Philippine Capitol. Currently, the police have not revealed the identities of the individuals involved in the bombing, nor have they disclosed whether there is any connection between this incident and Marcos’ State of the Union address.
