Filipino police make bombing arrests

Police in the Philippines say they have arrested a number of people in connection with two recent bomb attacks in the southern city of Zamboanga.

The police say those arrested are allegedly members of the militant Islamic group, Abu-Sayyaf , which is reported to have links with Osama Bin Laden's al-Qaeda organisation.

The suspects were detained overnight on suspicion of involvement in explosions last week in two department stores and at a Christian shrine.

Eight people died in the blasts, and 170 were injured.

Zamboanga has been the target of a series of bombings since it served as the base of joint US-Philippines military exercises earlier this year.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service