(UPDATED) 'Islamic State fighters carried out the attack in Manila in the Philippines yesterday,' the group's self-styled Amaq news agency says, confirming an earlier SITE report quoting an 'IS operative' as saying the group was responsible

ISIS CLAIMS RESPONSIBILITY. Police and firemen enter the casino side of Resorts World Manila in Pasay City on June 2, 2017. Photo by Alecs Ongcal/Rappler

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – The Islamic State (ISIS) claimed on Friday, June 2, that its "fighters" carried out the attack on Resorts World Manila in Pasay City that ignited a fire which killed 37 people.

Before the gunman had been killed and the police had given any motive, there was an unconfirmed claim of responsibility from ISIS.

US President Donald Trump also branded it a "terrorist attack."

Later Friday, ISIS' self-styled Amaq news agency carried a brief message in Arabic on Telegram, which said: "Islamic State fighters carried out the attack in Manila in the Philippines yesterday." It gave no further details.

A formal communique from the ISIS' East Asia division was issued hours after the message from Amaq news agency. Below is the formal communique and a translation of the message:

Filipino officials were adamant it was not related to terrorism, and was the work of an individual.

The dead suffocated inside one of the main gambling venues of the upscale Resorts World Manila, while dozens of other people were injured in a panicked crush to escape, police said.

The gunman committed suicide inside a hotel room by burning himself about 5 hours after storming the casino with an M4 assault rifle and a bottle of gasoline that he used to start the fire, Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa said.

Source: http://www.rappler.com/nation/171802-isis-claims-manila-casino-attack