MANILA – The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) on Tuesday cut off all mobile phone signals in Zamboanga City to thwart any possible terror attacks amid the celebration of the Hermosa Festival.

The temporary loss of mobile signal was scheduled from 12 noon to 5 p.m. Tuesday, according to an advisory from Globe Telecommunications.

The NTC also mandated a signal shutdown on Sunday from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., in time for the festival’s “Parade of Lights.”

On September 2, a cellphone was used to detonate an improvised explosive device (IED) that ripped through a packed night market in Davao City, killing at least 14 people. Three members of the Maute Group were arrested Tuesday for supposedly masterminding the attack.