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Friday, April 20, 2007
Heads of 7 hostages delivered to Army detachment in southern RP (12:10 a.m.)
MANILA -- The heads of seven men who were kidnapped by the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf group on southern Jolo island were delivered to a Philippine Army detachment on Thursday, officials said.
The men - six road project workers and a dried-fish factory worker - were snatched at gunpoint in two separate incidents Monday near the town of Parang.
Major General Ruben Rafael, commander of military forces on Jolo, said a group of civilians were ordered to take the heads to Parang by Abu Sayyaf commander Albader Parad, who operates in Jolo's mountainous townships of Indanan and Parang.
Jolo Governor Ben Loong and other officials confirmed the grisly delivery.
"This is a retaliation for the killing of one of their commanders," Rafael said. "This is a terrorist act that should be condemned by all."
He said the company, which employed the road workers had refused to pay a ransom.
The Abu Sayyaf, which is on a list of US terrorist groups and has a reputation for bombings, mass abductions and beheadings, has been the target of a massive US-backed military offensive on Jolo that started in August and has killed its top two leaders.
Loong has said the kidnappings showed the Abu Sayyaf remains capable of banditry and terrorist acts despite a number of battlefield losses.
He said it was unclear whether the kidnappings were intended to divert troops who are hunting for Muslim rebel commander Habier Malik and his men from the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF).
Malik was blamed for deadly mortar attacks in Jolo last week.
Military chief General Hermogenes Esperon said Malik has provided sanctuary to Abu Sayyaf guerrillas and Indonesian militants who have been targeted by the US-backed offensive.
An estimated 300 to 400 Abu Sayyaf gunmen remain at large on Jolo, about 950 kilometers (590 miles) south of Manila. Washington has offered large rewards for the capture of the Abu Sayyaf's top commanders. (AP)
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