Bomb in Philippines market kills 15 shoppers

A powerful explosion ripped through a market packed with Christmas shoppers in the southern Philippines yesterday, killing at least 15 people and injuring 58 others, the military said.

A home-made bomb or a grenade concealed in a box went off in the market's meat section in General Santos city, a bustling port city 620 miles south of Manila..

"This is a terrorist attack by any measure," said Richard Gordon, who heads the Philippines Red Cross.

He criticised the military and police for failing to prevent the attack despite what he said was intelligence information indicating a planned terror strike in the city.