Dozens dead in Resorts World Manila attack

At least 38 people have now been confirmed dead following an armed and arson attack on a resort and casino complex in Manila, just minutes after midnight on Friday.

Philippine officials blamed the incident on an “emotionally disturbed individual”, who tried to carry out a robbery, by shooting at TV screens and setting on fire properties inside Resorts World Manila casino, suffocating many of the victims.

But several reports now say a fighter of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, known as ISIS) group was responsible for the attack, a claim that Hermogenes Esperon, Philippine national security adviser, has dismissed as “plain and simple propaganda”.