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Southeast Asia
Abu Sayyaf frees ten Indonesian captives
2016-05-02
[Gulf Today] Abu Sayyaf militants on Sunday released ten Indonesian crewmen of a tugboat they had abducted more than a month ago off the island province of Tawi-Tawi.

Police chief Wilfredo Cayat said the rebels dropped off the Indonesian crewmen in front of the house of Sulu Governor Abdusakur Tan in the capital town of Jolo. He said, "They were brought inside (Tan’s house). They were fed. Governor Tan called me and turned over the 10 Indonesians to our custody."

An anonymous source disclosed the insurgents freed the hostages after the Indonesian company that owned the tugboat had paid on Friday the $1 miliion ransom they demanded.

The tugboat was bound for Manila on March 28 when was attacked by the militants using a speedboat and took hostage its ten Indonesian crewmen and brought them to Sulu.

Their release comes barely a week after the Abu Sayyaf beheaded on Canadian John Ridsdel for his failure to pay a huge ransom for his release. This drew local and international condemnation led by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau who denounced it as "cold-blooded murder.

Also in Mindanao, members of the communist New People's Army announced the release of six candidates they had abducted in Agusan del Sur province for their failure to pay fees to enable them to campaign, especially in remote areas controlled by the insurgents.

An NPA spokesman confirmed the release of the six candidates who are running for reelection in the municipal council of the town of San Francisco in the May 9 polls. The spokesman said 20 heavily-armed NPA militants stopped and kidnapped the seven candidates on their way home after a campaign event in an "NPA held territory" on April 25.

The insurgents also shot and injured another candidate when he tried to escape, said the spokesman but did not say whether their six hostages had paid the so-called "permit to campaign fees".
Posted by:ryuge

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