(2000–2010) (2011–present) On December 3, 2023, an Islamist bombing occurred during a Catholic Mass at the gymnasium of Mindanao State University in Marawi, Philippines, killing four people.

Marawi is a Muslim-majority city in Lanao del Sur in Bangsamoro, an autonomous region in Mindanao in the southern Philippines, a country whose population is predominantly Catholic.

In 2017, over 1,100 people were killed in a five-month siege between Islamic State-affiliated insurgents and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in Marawi.

[8] On December 3, 2023 at around 7:30 a.m., during a Mass being conducted at the Dimaporo Gymnasium of Mindanao State University in Marawi, an improvised explosive device detonated[9][10] after the Kyrie portion.

[9] An eyewitness reportedly saw a man placing a bag believed to contain the bomb,[15] while CCTV footage showed the two suspected bombers arriving at the gymnasium on a motorcycle at around 7:03 a.m. and stood there for eight minutes.

ABS-CBN reported that the IED, which was composed of a 60mm mortar round and an RPG high-explosive anti-personnel MEUG, had been concealed in a black tote bag.

Two days before the bombing, 11 members of the Dawlah Islamiya were killed in clashes with the Philippine Army in Datu Hoffer Ampatuan, Maguindanao del Sur, while Abu Sayyaf leader and Dawlah Islamiyah central committee member Mudzrimar Sawadjaan was killed in a separate clash with government forces in Basilan a day before the attack.

[16] Mimbesa was subsequently identified by university faculty and officials as having enrolled twice at the school, each time failing to finish his studies.

[34] On January 26, 2024, Omar was killed along with eight other Dawlah Islamiyah members in a firefight with the Philippine Army in the highlands of Piagapo, Lanao del Sur.

[36] Following the bombing, university president Basari Mapupuno released a memorandum stating that classes and extracurricular activities in the school were suspended from December 4 until further notice;[37] as a result, students, faculty, and personnel were repatriated to their home provinces.

[5] Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro told a news conference there was a strong indication of a foreign element in the bombing.

[51] House member for Lanao del Sur's 1st district, Zia Adiong advised that declaring martial law in the city would be counter-productive and cause "unnecessary panic".

[55] Following the meeting, Senate President Migz Zubiri urged local officials to look into alleged radicalization efforts since the 2017 Marawi siege.

[64] Archbishop emeritus of Cotabato Cardinal Orlando Quevedo called the bombing a "massacre" and a "terrorist attack" but urged for peace.

[65] Father Sebastiano D'Ambra, an Italian missionary priest who has been in the Philippines for decades and is heavily involved in Catholic-Muslim dialogue, through the Silsilah Dialogue Movement, lamented the fact that the attack had taken place on the first day of the Mindanao Week of Peace, saying: "What was meant to be a week full of positive peace-building moments has become a time of terror".

[67][68] Representatives from Australia, Canada, France, Israel, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, and the United States condemned the bombing.

[12] Non-government organization Council on Climate Conflict and Action Asia (CCCAA) expressed concern that the incident would be used to sow divisions between Christians and Muslims.

Among the content which circulated was a fake quote card posted in Facebook from an account named Fahima Salik tv attributing Bangsamoro Interior Minister Naguib Sinarimbo as saying that "the bombing happened because there is no place for Christians in Marawi".