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| Southeast Asia |
| Abu Sayyaf behind abduction of two in Sabah |
| 2014-04-05 |
| The Philippine military confirmed that Al Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf militants in Mindanao were behind the abduction of a Chinese tourist and a Filipina worker from a diving resort in Malaysiaâs island state of Sabah. Military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Ramon Zabala identified one of the abductors as Murphy Ambal Ladra, a former member of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) who later joined the Abu Sayyaf on the island province of Tawi-Tawi in Mindanao. Zabala said the military was also looking into reports that Ladra was a âloyalistâ of the MNLF founding chairman Nur Misuari blamed for the bloody and violent siege staged by the organizationâs ârogue elementsâ in Zamboanga City last September. He said Ladra was among the seven heavily-armed Abu Sayyaf militants who stormed a diving resort in Sabah late on Wednesday night and abducted the Chinese tourist and the Filipina worker. Zabala said the military received initial reports that the abductors, using a speedboat, eluded pursuing Malaysian forces and brought the two victims to the town of Simunul in Tawi-Tawi. It's likely the abductors will eventually bring the victims to the neighboring island province of Sulu where the insurgents operate with impunity especially in the town of Patikul. |
| Posted by:ryuge |