00:01Police foil a plotted mass shooting at a local school after catching a group of students drawn
00:06to extremism on the gaming platform Roblox. The House of Representatives votes to scrap the travel
00:12tax. Vice President Sara Duterte questions the so-called double standards of the House in
00:17handling her impeachment case. U.S. President Donald Trump slams allies as supposed ingratitude
00:23after rebuffing his demand for Hormuz warship escorts. And South Korea's president says security
00:29and safety are the top priority for K-pop band BTS's concert.
00:42Police foil a plotted mass shooting at a school in Calabarzon after catching a group of students
00:47drawn to extremism via the gaming platform Roblox. GMA News reports the PNP anti-cybercrime group said
00:54the seven youngsters showed signs of violent extremism. One of them, a sixth grader, made an
01:00online post that said, I will burn down my school. Police confiscated their phones and found photos
01:05of items such as pins with Nazi-related incinia, body armor, a helmet, and an M16 rifle. The children
01:11were reportedly being asked to procure those items. From Roblox, they were allegedly funneled to other
01:17platforms where foreign-speaking persons exposed them to violent messaging and imagery. A Philstar
01:23report says the planned attack was set for February 16, but the police's foreign counterparts tipped
01:28them off on January 13. Police rescued the students on February 2. Reports from other countries,
01:34including Australia and Singapore, tell of gaming platforms being used to radicalize children.
01:41The House of Representatives votes to abolish the travel tax. A total of 257 lawmakers backed the bill,
01:48one voted no and one abstention. House Bill No. 8464 seeks to abolish the travel tax imposed.
01:55The Senate has yet to pass a similar measure, which means the proposal cannot be sent to President
01:59Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s desk for his signature yet. Currently, Filipino travelers pay 1,620 pesos for
02:06economy-class international trips and 2,700 pesos for first-class flights. The Philippines is the only
02:12country in Southeast Asia that still imposes a travel tax on passengers. Under the approved House Bill,
02:18the national government will cover the funds lost by the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone
02:23Authority, the Commission on Higher Education, and the National Commission for Culture and the Arts,
02:27through the annual national budget.
02:31Vice President Sara Duterte questions what she described as double standards by the House of
02:36Representatives in how her impeachment case was handled compared to that of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
02:41Duterte filed her verified answer to the two impeachment complaints against her Monday,
02:46March 16, the last day she could submit her response. She says the Justice Committee, quote,
02:51"...went beyond the four corners of the complaint and relied on extraneous considerations that are
02:55irrelevant when it dismissed the complaints against Marcos." Duterte adds the committee treated
03:00the allegations against her as established truth even before the trial begins. She also says the notice
03:06of this allowance issued by the Commission on Audit over her office's 73 million pesos in confidential
03:11expenses is still under appeal. Duterte adds the claims made by her former employee Ramil Madriaga
03:18in a sworn affidavit were unsubstantiated.
03:22U.S. President Donald Trump accuses some Western allies of ingratitude after several countries rebuffed his
03:28demand to send warships to escort oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz. This as Iran continues to
03:33target oil facilities in the Gulf. Some U.S. allies including Germany, Spain and Italy say they
03:38had no immediate plans to send ships to help reopen the strategic waterway. German Chancellor Friedrich
03:44Merz says, "...we lack the mandate from the United Nations, the European Union or NATO required under the basic law."
03:50He notes Washington and Israel had not consulted Germany before launching the war.
03:54Trump says many countries had told him they were prepared to help but voiced frustration with some
03:59long-standing allies. The U.S.-Israeli war on Iran is in its third week with no end in sight.
04:05The Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed off, raising energy prices and fears of inflation.
04:12South Korean President Lee Jae-myung says, "...security and safety must be a top priority for a concert by
04:18K-pop band BTS on Saturday, March 21 in Seoul. This includes readiness for any possible attacks of
04:24terror." The free comeback concert for BTS in central Seoul is expected to draw up to 260,000 people,
04:31making it one of the largest public gatherings in the area since the 2002 World Cup. Authorities
04:36earlier said, they plan to deploy around 4,800 police officers and 3,400 officials from the city
04:42of Seoul and related organizations. BTS is marking the release of its first new album in more than
04:47three years with a free concert on March 21. And that's today's wrap. I'm JC Gotinga. Thank you for
04:55watching. Click the link below for the full story. For more updates, download the Rappler app.
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