Rodrigo Duterte has said his family members may be members of Isis.

The President of the Philippines linked the extremist group to two recent bomb attacks, acknowledging the possibility of an Isis presence in the country.

“Isis seems to be everywhere,” he told the editor of Rappler, an online news site based in the Philippines.

Mr Duterte said his cousins were members of local Islamist separatist groups the Moro Islamic Liberation Front [MI] and the Moro National Liberation Front [MN].

He said they may also have joined the so-called Islamic State.

“To be frank, I have cousins on the other side, with MI and MN. Some, I heard, are with Isis.”

The world leader said two explosions – one at a night market in the city of Davao that killed 14 and wounded 70 in September, and a blast outside a church in the Cotabato region on Christmas Eve that wounded around 13 – were connected to Isis.

He told the news site he was “not ready” to share his information on the matter, although he said he had discussed the threat posed by the group with other heads of state.

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Isis-affiliated militant group Abu Sayyaf claimed responsibility for the Davao attack, but at the time, Mr Duterte said investigators were looking at the possible involvement of drug syndicates.

Abu Sayyaf is based in the south west of the Philippines, where Islamist Moro groups have led a violent insurgency for decades.

Mr Duterte became president in June after a landslide election victory and has launched a deadly war on drugs in which thousands of people have been killed by police and vigilantes.

The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Show all 9 1 /9 The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte On killing drug addicts “These sons of whores are destroying our children. I warn you, don’t go into that, even if you’re a policeman, because I will really kill you. If you know of any addicts, go ahead and kill them yourself as getting their parents to do it would be too painful” The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Message to China “I will go there on my own with a Jet Ski, bringing along with me a [Phillipino] flag and a pole, and once I disembark, I will plant the flag on the runway and tell the Chinese authorities, ‘Kill me’ ” AP The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Christmas message to law-breakers “If you do not want to stop, and just continue committing crimes, then this would be your last Merry Christmas” AP The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte On sex life “I was separated from my wife. I’m not impotent. What am I supposed to do? Let this hang forever? When I take Viagra, it stands up” AFP/Getty Images The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte On the drugs trade “None of my children are into illegal drugs. But my order is, even if it is a member of my family, ‘kill him'" AP The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Insulting the Pope “We were affected by the traffic. It took us five hours. I asked why, they said it was closed. I asked who is coming. They answered, the pope. I wanted to call him: ‘Pope, son of a wh**e, go home. Do not visit us again’” AFP/Getty Images The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Joke about rape “I saw her face and I thought, 'What a pity... they raped her, they all lined up. I was mad she was raped but she was so beautiful. I thought, the mayor should have been first” AFP/Getty The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Insulting Barack Obama "Mr Obama should be respectful and refrain from throwing questions at me about the killings, or son of a bitch, I will swear at you in that forum" REUTERS The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte On Abu Sayyaf Islamic militants "If I have to face them, you know I can eat humans. I will really open up your body. Just give me vinegar and salt, and I will eat you. If you annoy me to the fullest... I will eat you alive. Raw" EPA

There have been 5,927 deaths linked to Mr Duterte’s extreme crackdown on drug dealers and users since 1 July, according to CNN.

During the interview, Mr Duterte described what could take place if he met his cousins who may have joined Isis.