An explosion at a market in the home city of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte killed at least 12 people on Friday and wounded dozens more, his spokesman said, adding that the cause of the blast was unknown.
The blast occurred just before 11:00 pm at a street market outside the high-end Marco Polo hotel in Davao, leaving bodies strewn amid the wreckage of plastic tables and chairs on a road that had been closed to traffic for the market in the heart of Davao city.
Duterte was in Davao on Friday, but was safe and at a police station after the explosion, his son Paolo Duterte, who is vice mayor of the city, told Reuters.
“The force just hurled me. I practically flew in the air,” Adrian Abilanosa, who said his cousin was among those killed.
Presidential spokesman Ernesto Abella told CNN Philippines that some 60 people were wounded and 10 were confirmed dead.
(With inputs from PTI, Reuters)
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