Sixteen killed in southern Philippines

A group of armed men has shot and killed sixteen people and wounded ten others in a highway ambush in the southern Philippines.

The victims, who included students and children, were travelling in three separate vehicles in the province of Cotabato, when they were stopped by the gunmen.

The gang robbed the passengers before shooting them.

Local officials said Muslim separatist guerrillas of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front carried out the killings, but the group has denied that it was involved. In recent weeks, Muslim rebels have been blamed for a series of attacks against civilians in the southern Philippines.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service