Grand Lotto jackpot could breach P200-M, PCSO says
The jackpot of the Grand Lotto 6/55 draw might exceed P200 million, the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) said Saturday, hours before the draw at 9 p.m.

Govt radio briefly goes off air, 'technical difficulty' cited
Malacañang assured the public there was no sabotage involved after the government-run radio station Radyo Ng Bayan went off the air for a few minutes Saturday morning.

PHL pushes rule of law on territorial disputes before UN council
The Philippines lobbied anew with the United Nations for the rule of law in heading off international conflict, citing a 30-year-old declaration on the peaceful resolution of such disputes.

Aquino to get briefing on planned SSS contribution hike
Malacañang expects the Social Security System (SSS) to brief President Benigno Aquino III on the plan to hike monthly contributions to 11 percent.

Palace backs military actions vs JI, Aquino to get briefing
Malacañang on Saturday reiterated its full backing for the military in going after members of the Jemaah Islamiyah terror group, following the killing of at least three top terror leaders in Mindanao earlier this week.

Malacañang insists its FOI bill won’t violate govt officials’ rights
Malacañang on Saturday insisted its version of the Freedom of Information (FOI) Bill will not violate the rights of government officials whose Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALNs) will be posted online.

Palace not objecting to Arroyo extended stay in govt hospital
Malacañang is backing the recommendation of the Department of Interior and Local Government and the Philippine National Police to let former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo stay at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center. A Palace spokesperson also said President Benigno Aquino III is leaving to the DILG and the police the matter of securing the former leader.

Palace admits hands tied on Iggy repatriation mess
Malacañang on Saturday admitted the Philippine government’s hands are tied on the latest legal row that threatens to delay the repatriation of the remains of the late Negros Occidental Rep. Ignacio “Iggy” Arroyo Jr.

Aquino aide gets off hook with ‘admonition’ for DVD mess
A presidential adviser perceived close to President Benigno Aquino III got off the hook with an admonition, less than two weeks after he was caught buying pirated video discs in Quezon City.

CBCP seeks review of laws on mining, logging
Stressing the need to protect the environment, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines urged the government to review its policies on mining and logging.

Legal row threatens to delay repatriation of Iggy remains
A legal row in London threatens to delay the repatriation of the remains of the late Negros Occidental Rep. Ignacio 'Iggy' Arroyo Jr., the lawyer of the late lawmaker's wife said Saturday.

PAGASA: Northeast monsoon to bring light rain during weekend
Filipinos can expect light rain during the weekend due to the northeast monsoon, the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said Saturday.

House prosecution presses for opening of alleged Corona $ account
The prosecution panel in the impeachment trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona claimed on Friday that dollar deposit accounts—like the one it has alleged is in the name of the chief magistrate—are not covered by the country’s bank secrecy law.

Miriam wants parents held liable for their kids’ crimes and misdemeanors
Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago has filed a bill that would require parents to pay for the crimes of their children who are still minors. 'Because they [parents] have the primary right to rear their children in the manner they see fit, parents should also be held responsible for malicious acts committed by their children,' Santiago said in support of her bill.

Corona lawyers hit back at critics, House prosecutors
The camp of impeached Chief Justice Renato Corona on Friday appealed to critics of the magistrate not to easily pass judgment on the character of the members of his legal team. In a press briefing at the Ateneo Law School campus in Makati, defense lawyers said Corona's critics should refrain from being 'judgmental' and learn to respect the position and opinion of both parties in the impeachment case.

GMA News Online / News / Nation

 

Gunmen attack fishing boats in Philippines, killing 15
Gun-wielding attackers aboard small vessels opened fire on a group of fishing boats in a restive area of the southern Philippines, killing 15 people in an apparent turf dispute between fishermen, the military authorities said Tuesday.

Manila's forgers graduate with honors from 'Recto University'
If you don't have the time, inclination and, more importantly, the money to go to university in Manila, you can still get a degree. It will cost you between $US10 and $US60, it will take about two hours to complete and it will be fake.

Security stepped up at Philippines procession after terror threats
Authorities in the Philippines say they have stepped up security measures for a huge religious procession taking place in Manila on Monday after receiving information suggesting it may be the target of a terrorist attack.

Hundreds hurt in New Year festivities in the Philippines
Firecrackers and gunfire injured nearly 500 people as throngs ushered in the New Year in Manila, CNN affiliate ABS-CBN reported Sunday.

Donations pour into Philippines in wake of deadly storm
Foreign aid to the Philippines in the wake of a deadly tropical storm has reached $12.6 million, the Philippine government announced Thursday.

More rain forecast for storm-battered Philippines
The Philippine government said Tuesday that fresh rain in Visayas and Mindanao could set off flash floods and landslides, bringing the potential for more misery in places already struggling to recover from a deadly tropical storm.

More than 1,000 missing in Philippines after storm
More than 1,000 people are missing in the aftermath of a tropical storm that wreaked havoc across the southern Philippines last weekend, the country's government said Friday, as it grappled with the mounting humanitarian crisis in the region.

Death toll from Philippines storm rises above 1,000
The death toll in the Philippines from a tropical storm that struck the south of the country over the weekend has risen above 1,000, a government official said Wednesday.

Storm death toll tops 650 in Philippines; hundreds missing
Tropical Storm Washi moved away from the southern Philippines early Monday, but not before leaving behind a wake of destruction and at least 652 people dead, according to the Philippine Red Cross.

At least 447 dead after storm pummels Philippines
The death toll from a tropical storm that pummeled the Philippines rose to at least 447 on Sunday, according to the national chairman of the Philippine Red Cross.

Kidnapped 14-year-old Filipino-American is free
A 14-year-old Filipino-American boy abducted in July by suspected Islamic militants in the Philippines is free, officials said.

13 killed in Philippines plane crash
A small plane crashed near the Philippine capital Saturday after its pilot requested an emergency landing, killing at least 13 people, CNN affiliate ABS-CBN reported.

Manila's little people seek their own community
Crowded, gritty, and poor, Metro Manila can be a tough place to live for just about anyone; but when you stand three feet 10 inches the odds are seriously stacked against you.

Blast kills 3, injures 27 in the Philippines
A blast at a hotel in the southern Philippines on Sunday killed three people and wounded 27, an official said.

Kidnapped American woman found on Philippine island, police say
A Filipino-American woman abducted in July in the Philippines was found Sunday on an island stronghold of the Islamic militant group Abu Sayyaf, police said.

Philippines hit by back-to-back typhoons that leave dozens dead
A second typhoon in a week pounded the Philippines over the weekend, weakening Sunday only after prompting evacuations, causing severe flooding and contributing to at least one death, officials said.

Philippines hit with second typhoon in a week
A second typhoon in a week pounded the Philippines over the weekend, weakening Sunday only after prompting evacuations, causing severe flooding and contributing to one death.

Typhoon affects hundreds of thousands in Philippines
A typhoon that left at least 21 people dead in the Philippines and 33 others missing spun toward China Thursday morning, while another another tropical storm brewing in the Pacific is expected to hit the Philippines again within days, news and weather agencies reported.

Typhoon affects tens of thousands in Philippines
A typhoon that left at least 18 people dead and thousands displaced in the Philippines was expected to move offshore Wednesday afternoon, the state-run Philippines News Agency reported early Wednesday.

Typhoon drenches Taiwan after claiming lives in the Philippines
Typhoon Nanmadol pounded Taiwan with heavy rains Monday before it was downgraded to a tropical storm and headed toward China, where hundreds of ships returned to harbor.

Typhoon reaches Taiwan after killing 7 in Philippines
Typhoon Nanmadol reached the southern coast of Taiwan early Sunday, according to the Central Weather Bureau there, after killing at least seven people in the Philippines.

Typhoon triggers landslide, killing 2 children in the Philippines
Typhoon Nanmadol triggered a landslide in northern Philippines on Saturday, killing at least two children, authorities said.

Typhoon Nanmadol expected to miss northern Philippines
Typhoon Nanmadol is not expected to make landfall in the Philippines, forecasters said Friday, a development that may be cheered in the places that were supposed to be in the path of the powerful storm.

Typhoon Nanmadol approaches the northern Philippines
Typhoon Nanmadol has strengthened in the past 24 hours and could hit the northern Philippines in the next two days, the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said Friday.

Typhoon fuels monsoon in the Philippines
A typhoon some 1,600 kilometers (994 miles) from the Philippine capital is supercharging summer monsoon rains, which have flooded parts of Manila and could trigger flash floods and landslides across other parts of the country, forecasters said Wednesday.

Typhoon-fueled monsoons pound Philippines
A typhoon off the coast of the Philippines is fueling monsoon rains, which flooded the capital city of Manila and could trigger flash floods and landslides, forecasters said on Wednesday.

Slow-moving tropical storm kills 27 in Philippines
A tropical storm moving through the Philippines on Wednesday has killed 27 people and left more than 60 injured or missing, according to a government disaster response agency.

Gunmen abduct 2 Americans in Philippines
Gunmen abducted two American citizens along with their Filipino relative from a southern Philippines island Tuesday, police said.

Strong earthquake rattles the Philippines
A 6.2-magnitude earthquake struck the Philippines early Tuesday, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

Flash floods kill 25, damage 264 homes in the Philippines
Flash floods in the Philippines have killed 25 people and damaged 264 homes, government officials said.

Tropical storm in Philippines kills 11, forces 40,000 out of homes
Heavy rains and high winds from Tropical Storm Meari lashed the Philippines Friday, killing at least 11 people and displacing 40,000 people, an emergency management agency said.

Bodies of WWII airmen brought home more than 60 years after crash
The bodies of five U.S. airmen who went missing when their plane crashed in the Philippines during World War II have been recovered and identified, the Defense Department announced Wednesday.

U.S. issues terror-related travel warning for Philippines
U.S. citizens should "exercise extreme caution" when traveling to the Philippines, the U.S. State Department said Tuesday in a statement.

New world's shortest man certified in the Philippines
A man from the Philippines was certified as the world's shortest man this weekend as he reached his 18th birthday, Guinness World Records announced.

Landslide kills at least 10 in southern Philippines
The army took over rescue efforts Friday after a landslide swept through a small mountain village in the southern Philippines, killing at least 10 people and leaving dozens missing.

Philippines' Taal Volcano shows new life
Volcanologists in the Philippines are closely monitoring a volcano on Luzon Island close to the capital, Manila, after a sudden spike in seismic activity.

Philippine authorities: Text on radiation danger is hoax
Filipino authorities sought to calm panic unleashed among some residents after a hoax text message warned that radiation from Japan may affect the Philippines.

25 years on, Philippines offers lessons for Egypt
When you live under a dictator, you follow the rules. Why? Because you're afraid -- for your job, your family, your life. Your neighbors are afraid. It creates a culture of fear and silence.

Philippines' evolving terrorism threat
Last week's bus bombing in the Philippines highlights how bomb-making techniques brought into the country by al Qaeda and its associate groups can be harnessed by multiple interests.

Death toll climbs to 5 in bus bombing
The death toll from a bus bombing in Manila's financial district climbed to five Wednesday as officials pointed to terror and crime groups in the country's south as a likely source of the attack.

71 dead in Philippines after weeks of flooding
A month of sustained rains have now killed at least 71 people in the Philippines, disaster authorities said Tuesday.

Bus explodes in Manila financial district
A powerful bomb exploded on a passenger bus Tuesday afternoon in Manila's financial district, killing four people and injuring 15 others, police said.

51 dead from flooding in the Philippines; 1.6 million affected
Some 51 people are dead in the Philippines after weeks of intense rain caused severe flooding across the Asian nation, the country's national disaster agency said early Monday.

40 people killed in flooding in the Philippines
Forty people have died as massive floods continued to hit areas of the Philippines, emergency officials said Wednesday.

Philippines hotel fire kills 15
A fire ravaged a hotel in northern Philippines on Sunday, killing 15 people, most burned beyond recognition, authorities said.

Bus explosion kills 10 in Philippines
At least 10 people were killed Thursday when a bomb blew up on a bus in the southern Philippines, police said.

10 killed in bus blast in the Philippines
At least 10 people were killed and 30 others wounded Thursday when a bomb blew up on a bus in the southern Philippines, the Philippines News Agency reported, citing police.

5 dead as Typhoon Megi strikes the Philippines
With memories of last year's killer typhoons still fresh, Typhoon Megi roared across the Philippines on Monday, ripping through roofs and cutting off electricity.

Philippines on alert as Super Typhoon Megi nears landfall
Emergency crews in the Philippines were on standby Monday morning as the island nation braced for a "super typhoon" that could trigger flooding and landslides.

Powerful typhoon bearing down on Philippines
The Philippines could begin feeling the effects of a powerful typhoon churning toward the island chain as early as Sunday, forecasters said Saturday.

Just back from: Palawan, Philippines
Dazzling beaches, pulsing jungles, rich underwater life and friendly locals greet visitors to the Philippines' Palawan province, made up of about 1,700 islands along the country's western edge.

Quake hits off Philippines
An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.7 struck Monday off the northern Philippines, the U.S. Geological Survey reported.

Squatters square off against police, demolition crew in Philippines
Hundreds of squatters in the Philippine capital faced off against authorities Thursday, in a bid to stop the demolition of their makeshift homes to make way for development.

Police leaders, reporters 'liable' in Philippine bus standoff
An investigative committee looking into last month's bungled bus standoff in the Philippines has recommended criminal or administrative charges against former top police officials and three television networks, President Benigno Aquino told reporters Monday.

Manila siege: Disbelief amid the gunfire
I could hear the rapid gun fire. There were several loud cracks, and it was distressing to know that each time the gun discharged behind the bus curtains, an innocent person could have been killed or seriously injured.

Hong Kong mourns victims of bus hijacking in the Philippines
As the bodies of eight tourists killed in a bus hijacking in the Philippines arrived in Hong Kong, China, on Wednesday, the Hong Kong government urged citizens not to take their grief and anger out on Filipinos despite "the poor way" the hijacking was handled by authorities.

Survivors describe terrifying ordeal inside bus
The wife of one of the victims of the Philippines bus gunman has told reporters that she pretended to be dead in order to survive.

Philippines police: Authorities botched hostage rescue
Anger mounted Tuesday as police in the Philippines acknowledged mistakes in a hostage rescue effort that ended with the deaths of eight people on a tourist bus.

Covering the Manila hostage scene: Gunfire, SWAT teams, blood
We arrived just as it was all unfolding. We got on the scene at about 6:30 p.m. and it was shortly afterward that gunshots were fired. We then went live into the 7 p.m. show and there were more exchanges of gunfire.

Bus crash in Philippines kills 39
A minibus plunged into a 100-meter deep ravine in the Philippines' Benguet province Wednesday morning, killing 39 people, a fire official told CNN.

Tropical Storm Ester leaves 1 dead, 15 missing in the Philippines
Tropical Storm Ester continued to intensify after sweeping across the Philippines over the weekend, leaving at least one person dead and 15 others missing, authorities said.

Suspected bomber dead in Philippines airport blast
A Philippines governor claims he was the target of a bomb explosion Thursday night that rocked the Zamboanga International Airport, according to the country's state-run news agency.

Earthquakes strike waters south of Philippines
A series of four strong earthquakes spanning just over an hour struck the Philippines' Moro Gulf on Saturday morning, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

Conson slams Vietnam, gets downgraded
The deadly weather system called "Conson" was downgraded to a tropical depression after slamming the northern coast of Vietnam with heavy rains and high winds.

Death toll rises from tropical storm in Philippines
The death toll from a tropical storm that tore through the Philippines this week rose to 39, officials said.

Philippines tropical storm death toll rises
The death toll from a tropical storm that tore through the Philippines this week has doubled.

Tropical Storm Conson rolls across Philippines
Tropical Storm Conson weakened further Wednesday, as it rolled westward over the Philippines, stranding more than 1,300 people across the archipelago.

Typhoon to hit Philippines on Tuesday, forecasters say
A typhoon was expected to make landfall on the Philippines late Tuesday, CNN meteorologists say.

Broken navigation system imperils flights at Manila airport
Despite a broken radio navigation system, planes will still be able to land and depart from Manila airport, aviation officials in the Philippines said Saturday.

6.0 quake strikes Philippines
A 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck the Philippines on Monday about 570 miles (917 km) southeast of Manila, the nation's capital, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

Violence mars Philippines elections
A gunman killed three people and wounded at least five at the house of a mayoral candidate in the Philippines before polls opened on Monday, a military spokeswoman said.

Fire destroys hundreds of homes in slum near Manila
A massive fire destroyed about 600 homes Sunday in a shantytown outside the Philippines capital, displacing some 2,500 families, fire officials said.

11 dead after southern Philippines attack
Fighting raged between militants and security forces on a southern Philippine island where al Qaeda-linked militants are active, a top Filipino military official said Tuesday.

Scratching out a life on Manila's Smokey Mountain
When I was told we were traveling to the Philippines to do a story on "Smokey Mountain", I was unaware as to just how famous this landmark actually was.

Strong earthquake hits Philippines
A strong earthquake struck the Philippines early Thursday afternoon, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

Despite disasters, Filipinos upbeat, survey shows
On the streets of Manila, flight attendant Lesly succinctly sums up her view on life: "Being positive and optimistic -- it's the only way. If you think too deeply about all the problems here, it'll only get you down and stop you from doing anything -- or make you want to leave."

Fourth typhoon in month hits Philippines
The fourth typhoon to hit the Philippines in a month came ashore east of the capital, Manila, on Saturday morning, bringing heavy rain, flooding, and washing away shanty houses near the coast.

Shame the nations where journalists are killed
The Afghan war claimed the lives of two more international news correspondents in the past two weeks.

Philippines mayor pleads not guilty to murder
A member of a politically powerful family in the southern Philippines pleaded not guilty to dozens of murder charges filled against him in connection with a November massacre in Maguindanao province, Philippine news outlets reported.

27 missing after boats collide in Philippines
More than two dozen people were missing after a ferry collided with a fishing boat off the coast of the Philippines on Thursday, according to the nation's coast guard.

Volcano spews lava as eruption looms
Fountains of red-hot lava shot up from the intensifying Mayon volcano as the Philippines awaited an imminent eruption, the country's national news agency reported Tuesday.

Philippines' Mayon Volcano to explode 'within days'
Tens of thousands of people have fled their homes as scientists warn the towering Mayon volcano is about to explode in the Philippines, the country's national news agency reported Monday.

Philippines volcano eruption likely soon
Philippine authorities on Sunday raised the alert status of the country's most active volcano to level 4 and established an extended danger zone around it, saying an eruption is imminent.

Residents flee as Philippines volcano threatens to erupt
Philippines authorities Tuesday started evacuating about 50,000 people living around the island nation's most active volcano after it oozed fiery lava and belched clouds of ash.

Remaining 45 Philippines hostages released
Gunmen in southern Philippines have released the remaining 45 hostages, ending a three-day crisis that began when the kidnappers raided a school in a small village late last week.

Arrests made under martial law in Philippines
Troops in the southern Philippines early Sunday took advantage of martial law to hunt down those believed responsible for last week's killings there.

Murder charges filed in Philippines
Philippine authorities charged a mayor and a group of unidentified suspects with 25 counts of murder Tuesday in the slaying of dozens of unarmed people, a court spokesman said.

100 suspects sought for Philippines massacre
One hundred more suspects -- including police officers -- could face arrest over a massacre in the Philippines, a government official said Friday after authorities charged the alleged architect of the killings.

Politician charged over Philippines massacre
Authorities have filed murder charges against a politician over the massacre of 57 unarmed civilians in the Philippines, state-run media reported Thursday.

Philippines politician to be questioned
The son of a Philippines provincial governor is voluntarily turning himself in for questioning in the massacre of at least 57 unarmed civilians, a CNN affiliate reported Thursday.

Group: Philippines most dangerous country for journalists
The Philippines this year has been the world's most dangerous country for journalists, an official of the advocacy group the Committee to Protect Journalists told CNN's "Amanpour" program Wednesday.

Death toll rises in Philippines massacre
Bodies lie scattered in a rural field in the southern Philippines, some unearthed from a shallow grave hastily dug by the gunmen who seized the group of men and women just a day earlier.

Philippines region on alert after massacre
The Philippines government has increased security in the southern region of Maguindanao after gunmen kidnapped and killed at least 22 people, according to military officials and the country's national news agency.

Irish priest kidnapped in Philippines freed
An Irish priest kidnapped last month in the southern Philippines was freed Thursday.

At least 14 dead after Typhoon Mirinae lashes Philippines
At least 14 people were dead and four missing in the Philippines a day after Typhoon Mirinae roared through the heart of the country, the National Disaster Coordinating Council said Sunday.

Typhoon strengthens as it nears the Philippines
As the Philippines tried to recover from the one-two punch of deadly storms, another typhoon strengthened as it rushed toward it Tuesday.

Typhoon nears Philippines as toll rises
A powerful typhoon lumbered toward the storm-battered Philippines on Monday, as the death toll from two devastating storms in the last month climbed to 858.

Irish priest kidnapped during 'evening stroll' in Philippines
An Irish priest was kidnapped Sunday in the southern Philippines, his missionary society said.

Days of flooding, landslides kill 186 in Philippines
Flooding and landslides from tropical depression Parma have killed 186 people in the Philippines, authorities said Saturday.

15 dead as Typhoon Parma whips Philippines
Typhoon Parma crossed the northern tip of the already storm-battered Philippines over the weekend, triggering landslides that killed at least 12 people, local media reported Sunday.

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