MANILA - Hackers allegedly took down the websites of the Cotabato provincial government and Kidapawan City on Saturday morning, following the violent dispersal that left two farmers dead in the city Friday.

On its Facebook page, cyber group Anonymous Philippines claimed responsibility for the "distributed denial of service" (DDoS) attack.

Knock knock!http://kidapawancity.gov.ph/http://cotabatoprov.gov.ph/~n3far1ous

Posted by Anonymous Philippines on Friday, April 1, 2016

A DDos attack occurs when multiple systems overwhelm the bandwidth of an online service, thus barring the publication of and access to important information.

Friday's dispersal in Kidapawan City started when militants barricaded the national highway to demand the release of 15,000 sacks of rice subsidy after their crops failed amid the worsening El Niño in the province.

READ: They cried for food, they got bullets

The clash, which also injured some 93 policemen and 23 farmers and militants, drew the ire of church leaders and other groups.

The Philippine National Police (PNP) has insisted that they followed the maximum tolerance principle during the protest.

Anonymous Philippines last Sunday defaced the website of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) with a message slamming the poll body for its initial reluctance to print voter's receipts.

LOOK: Comelec website hacked