A suspected Islamic militant grabbed a guard's rifle Sunday while being led to a court hearing, shot dead three other guards and holed up in the building with armed detainees who joined him, police said. Police surrounded the building in Manila, and negotiators were trying to end the standoff, police Superintendent Agrimero Cruz said. It wasn't clear if hostages were being held, he said. But a detainee delegated to speak for the prisoners told DZBB radio that the suspects were holding around 100 hostages. It wasn't clear if they were detainees, guards or both. Cruz said the prisoners demanded to talk to movie action star Robin Padilla, a Muslim convert, and Partylist Representative Mujib Hataman. The attacker, a suspected Abu Sayyaf militant, was being escorted from a maximum security detention center that houses mostly Muslim extremists when he overpowered the guard. He then took his rifle and shot the prison officers around him, police officials said. At least three guards were killed, Cruz said. Another police officer said at least three other prison officials were wounded and rushed to a hospital.
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National Capital Region Director Avelino Razon in a television interview said the Abu Sayyaf inmates are now restricted in one area inside the jail facility while the rest of the inmates were transferred to a safer section in the detention center. The group is led by Alhanser Manatad Limbong alias Commander Kosovo, Commander Robot and Commander Global, all known Abu Sayyaf leaders. [Former hostage] Gracia Burnham visited Camp Bagong Diwa last year for the hearing of suspected Abu Sayyaf bandits accused of kidnapping for ransom. She identified six of eight men, all suspected of being members of the Islamic Abu Sayyaf group, as among her kidnappers. They are Abu Umbran alias Abdul Assan Djamla , Kosovo, Abu Kair Mokhtar alias Khayr Moktar, Alsen Jandul alias Balintong Djandul, a certain Abu Daud and Bas Ismael. Marksmen and Special Forces are deployed in the area to cordon off the section where the Abu Sayyaf inmates are holed out. |