Authorities - Terror group behind deadly bombing

ZAMBOANGA, Philippines -- Philippine authorities vowed Thursday to "cut off the hand" of the Abu Sayyaf, blaming the terror group for a bombing attack that killed three people -- including an American Green Beret -- and injured 25 others.

The explosion Wednesday evening shattered an open-air market in Zamboanga. The jittery city about 530 miles south of Manila was put even more on edge by a small explosion Thursday near a Protestant church. No one was injured, and the only damage was a scorch mark on the sidewalk.

Gen. Hermogenes Ebdane, the national police chief, blamed Wednesday's attack on Abu Sayyaf, a group linked to the al-Qaida terror network.

The driver of a motorcycle in which the nail-laden bomb was stashed was identified as an Abu Sayyaf member from a sketch based on witness accounts, Ebdane said. There were conflicting reports whether the man was among the dead.

Military chief of staff Benjamin Defensor promised to go after the Abu Sayyaf, which both U.S. and Philippine officials said three months ago had been virtually wiped out during an American-backed military offensive involving thousands of Philippine troops.

The body of the Green Beret, identified as Sgt. 1st Class Mark Wayne Jackson, 40, of Glennie, Mich., was flown to Japan along with an injured U.S. soldier.

The Abu Sayyaf warned last week it would mount attacks on civilian, military and U.S. targets in the Philippines to retaliate for an ongoing government offensive against Muslim rebels in the southern Philippines.