Top Philippine lawmaker labels casino attack a 'terrorist' act
Source: Reuters
Sat Jun 3, 2017 | 9:09am EDT
By Karen Lema | MANILA
A gunman who stormed and torched a Manila casino, killing 36 people, was a "lone wolf" terrorist, a top Philippines lawmaker said on Saturday, contradicting the police assessment that the man had merely wanted to steal gambling chips.
The gunman, whose identity remains unknown, killed himself in a hotel room after being shot by security officers at the Resorts World Manila entertainment complex, authorities said.
Pantaleon Alvarez, speaker of the lower house of Congress and a close ally of President Rodrigo Duterte, said he was not convinced the incident was a criminal case of armed robbery and arson. "This is a clear example of a 'lone wolf' terrorist attack targeting civilians to inflict maximum loss of life and damage to property, as what has happened in other countries," Alvarez said in a statement.
Islamic State (IS) militants claimed responsibility for the attack, but this was dismissed by Philippines officials, who said it appeared to have been a botched robbery. [nL3N1IY57Q]
Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-philippines-resort-idUSKBN18U07K?il=0
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