Manila - A homemade bomb exploded in a public market in the southern Philippines on Sunday, but no one was hurt in the attack blamed on Muslim separatist rebels, the military said.

The blast occurred before dawn when the market in Kiamba town in Sarangani province, 1,025 kilometres south of Manila, said army Major Edgardo De Leon.

"There was no casualty, so the attack was probably meant to terrorize," he said.

De Leon said Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels were suspected to be behind the bombing.

Manila - A peace advocacy group on Thursday called for a ceasefire between the military and Muslim separatist rebels in the southern Philippines, where more than 500,000 people have been displaced by fighting since last month.

More than 200 people, including nearly 70 civilians, have also been killed in the hostilities that started in August when Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels launched a series of attacks in the southern region of Mindanao.

The Mindanao People's Caucus appealed to Arroyo to declare a ceasefire to allow the government to focus on the growing number of evacuees due to the conflict.

Manila- A cargo vessel sank off a central Philippine province Thursday, but all 13 people aboard were able to swim to safety, the coast guard said.

The vessel was 50 metres away from a private wharf in Cebu province, 585 kilometres south of Manila, when it "suddenly submerged" and its officers and crew were able to swim to the wharf, a coast guard report said.

Teams set up markers in the waters to monitor for a possible oil spill from the sunken vessel, which was carrying gravel, the coast guard said.

Manila  - The Supreme Court's swift action to punish several appellate court justices involved in a multimillion-peso bribery scandal has boosted anti-corruption efforts in the Philippines' graft-ridden judiciary.

After two months of investigation, the high tribunal on Tuesday dismissed from service Court of Appeals Associate Justice Vicente Roxas for multiple violations of the canons of the Code of Judicial Conduct.

The decision was hailed as a warning to erring magistrates.

"This should now instill fear in the hearts of those in the legal system that the Supreme Court will not take lightly any act that will smear the integrity of the legal profession and our justice system," House Speaker Prospero Nograles said.

Manila - Thousands of people were stranded Wednesday in flash floods in the Philippine capital amid heavy rains driven by Typhoon Sinlaku.

Afternoon classes were suspended in several areas of metropolitan Manila as flood water rose to waist-high in some streets.

The National Disaster Coordinating Council said it had not yet received any reports of casualties.

The weather bureau said it was expecting more rains in the capital and northern provinces as the storm moves away from the Philippines.

Manila - The Philippines on Wednesday dispatched a three-member team to mediator Malaysia to explain the collapse of peace talks with Muslim secessionist rebels in the southern region of Mindanao.

Secretary Jesus Dureza said the team, headed by presidential peace adviser Hermogenes Esperon, would explain the official status of the peace negotiations with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

Malaysia has been brokering the peace negotiations between the 12,000-strong MILF and the Philippine government, which started in 1997.