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Bombs exploded in two southern Philippine cities on Wednesday, killing at least six people and wounding dozens, days before a summit meeting of leaders from 16 Asian nations gets under way. Western governments have warned of bomb attacks by Islamic militants during the summit from January 13 to 15.

A typhoon swept into the central Philippines on Saturday, a day after it forced the government to hastily shelve a gathering of Asian leaders on a resort island south of the storm’s projected path. Typhoon Utor is the second storm to batter the archipelago in as many weeks and brought gusts of up to 150kph and heavy rain to the island of Samar, about 600km south-east of Manila.

Twenty-three people died in a night of violence which erupted as Philippine police went to arrest the politically connected leader of a messianic cult accused of murdering his wife.