Ongoing conflict in Mindanao and recent bombings at airports in Davao and Cotabato City and other incidents make travel to much of this southern island dangerous. The March 4 bombing in Davao killed at least 20 and wounded more than 140, and the Cotabato City bombing killed one and injured 20. Another bombing at Tagum, the capital of Davao del Norte province, injured several people. Officials have blamed the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) for these bombings, and some feel they have stepped up the violence because they are losing ground to a Philippine military offensive and want to push the government back to peace talks, which were suspended in January. Further, an MILF member responsible for a bombing in Manila in 2000 and trained by al Qaeda in Afghanistan has been linked to the Davao bombing. In a highway robbery incident, some 200 MILF gunmen seized a bus with 40 passengers traveling between Cotabato City and Davao and robbed the passengers, killing one, before being driven off by the military. Travel to the islands of Basilan, Tawi-Tawi and Jolo, located in the Sulu archipelago in the extreme southwest of the Philippines, should be avoided because of kidnappings and other criminal activity.
