An alleged plot by al-Qaida-linked militants to assassinate President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has sparked cancellation of her planned visit to the Philippines’ premier military academy this weekend.

A top al-Qaida-linked militant, long wanted by the US and Philippine authorities for deadly terror attacks, has been killed in a clash with troops in a major blow to his brutal rebel group, the military said today.

A bomb explosion rocked a southern Philippine public market today, killing at least three people and wounding 20 others, police said, as officials warned that Muslim militants may try to disrupt this weekend’s Asian regional summit.

The Philippine military has crippled a suspected coup plot by identifying and investigating 14 officers who were allegedly involved, the army chief said today.