Security forces rescue kidnapped Filipino-Swiss in Zamboanga City

A journalist points to an undated police photo of Charlie Reith, 72, a Filipino with Swiss ancestry, who was rescued Thursday, June 16, 2010, on a village called Labuan in Zamboanga City in the southern Philippines. Reith was kidnapped April 4, 2010 by eight gunmen from his beach house in Patalon village in Zamboanga City. (Mindanao Examiner Photo - Jung Francisco)

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / June 16, 2010) – Security forces rescued Wednesday a Filipino with Swiss ancestry on a coastal village in the southern Philippine city of Zamboanga, police said.

Senior Superintendent Edwin de Ocampo, the local police chief, said Charlie Reith, 72, was rescued in Labuan village and that operations were going on to capture the kidnappers.

“Charlie Reith is rescued and there is still an ongoing operation in the area,” De Ocampo told the Mindanao Examiner.

De Ocampo did not give details of the daring rescue which began at 3 a.m., but he said security forces surprised the kidnappers that led to the rescue of Reith.

It was unknown if any of Reith’s kidnappers were captured by soldiers and police commandos.

De Ocampo did not say whether Moro rebels were involved in the kidnapping, but three photos of Reith’s captors the police previously made public showed one of them was involved in the kidnapping of Irish missioner Michael Sinnott in Pagadian City in Zamboanga del Sur province in October last year.

Sinnott, 80, was freed two months later in the village of Sangali in Zamboanga City after private negotiators paid huge ransom to the kidnappers, believed to be Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels who originally demanded two million dollars for the priest’s safe release.

Reith, who was kidnapped on April 4, was taken to hospital for medical examination.

Authorities said at least 8 armed men stormed Reith’s beach house in Zamboanga City’s Patalon village and seized him. His friend, German national Karl Reichling, managed to fight off the raiders. The kidnappers later demanded P20 million for Reith’s safe release and at one time threatened to cut off his finger if his family does not pay up.

A video sent several weeks ago by the kidnappers to his friends showed Reith, frail and bearded, reading the ransom demand inside a makeshift tent.

Reith’s father was married to a Filipino woman and his family owns a vast track of land in Zamboanga City.

No group or individual claimed responsibility for Reith’s kidnapping. But the military tagged MILF sub-leader Malista Malanca and Abu Sayyaf commander Khair Mundos as responsible for Reith’s kidnapping. Authorities have linked both groups to previous kidnappings and terrorism in Zamboanga.

Kidnappings-for-ransom in Zamboanga City were not uncommon. Many foreigners and wealthy traders had been kidnapped in the past and released after their family paid ransom. Among those kidnapped in Zamboanga City were Taiwanese, Belgian, German and Chinese citizens. (Mindanao Examiner)

Police release photos of kidnappers of Swiss-Filipino

Suspected kidnappers of Irish missioner Michael Sinnott. Police in Zamboanga City also released a photo of the second man (from left) who is also one of several suspects in the kidnapping April 4, 2010 of Swiss Filipino Charlie Reith.

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / April 22, 2010) – Gunmen who were tagged as behind the kidnapping last year of an Irish Catholic priest could be holding a Swiss Filipino in the southern Philippines.

Police have released three photographs of alleged captors of Charlie Reith,
but it did not give details or report on the progress of the search for the 72-year old victim who was kidnapped on April 4 from his beach house in Zamboanga City.

One of the three photographs was previously tagged by the police as behind the kidnapping of Irish missioner Michael Sinnott in Pagadian City in Zamboanga del Sur province in October last year.

Sinnott, 80, was freed two months later after private negotiators paid huge ransom to the kidnappers, believed to be Moro rebels who originally demanded two million dollars for the priest’s safe release.

Officials said at least 8 armed men stormed Reith’s beach house in Patalon village and seized him. His friend, German national Karl Reichling, managed to fight off the raiders.

Reith’s father was married to a Filipino woman and he owns a vast track of land in Zamboanga City.

No group or individual claimed responsibility for Reith’s kidnapping and police would not say whether the Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels or Abu Sayyaf militants were behind it.

But the military tagged MILF sub-leader Malista Malanca and Abu Sayyaf commander Khair Mundos as responsible for the kidnapping. Authorities have linked both groups to previous kidnappings and terrorism in Zamboanga.

Kidnappings-for-ransom in Zamboanga City were not uncommon. Many foreigners and wealthy traders had been kidnapped in the past and released after their family paid ransom. Among those kidnapped in Zamboanga City were Taiwanese, Belgian, German and Chinese citizens. (Mindanao Examiner)

Sayyaf, MILF attack military post in Basilan province

BASILAN, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Mar. 20, 2010) – Suspected Abu Sayyaf militants backed by Moro rebels attacked Saturday a military post and wounded a soldier and three government militias in the troubled province of Basilan, south of the Philippines, officials said.

Officials said the attack occurred at around 6 a.m. in the village of Guiong in Sumisip town.

“Elements of the Marine Battalion Landing Team 7 together with government militias manning a temporary patrol base were harassed by an undetermined number of Abu Sayyaf and lawless MILF group. One soldier and three militias were wounded,” said Army First Lieutenant Steffani Cacho, a spokeswoman for the Western Mindanao Command.

The motive of the attack was unknown but the military and police had previously blamed both groups for the spate of terrorism and kidnappings in Basilan, a stronghold of the Abu Sayyaf and Moro Islamic Liberation Front.

The MILF is currently negotiating peace with Manila, but its fighters occasionally clashed with security forces in the southern Philippines and with both sides accusing each other of violating a fragile truce.

The military always tagged the MILF as lawless group if there are peace talks and terrorists and bandits is negotiations are either suspended or had failed. The MILF, which is fighting for self-determination the past decades, denied any alliance with the more violence Abu Sayyaf group whose members are tied to al-Qaeda and Jemaah Islamiya terror networks. (Mindanao Examiner)

Sayyaf attack leaves 12 dead in southern Philippines

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Feb. 27, 2010) – Suspected Abu Sayyaf militants attacked early Saturday a small village in the southern Philippine province of Basilan, killing 12 people, officials told the Mindanao Examiner.

Officials said ten villagers were also wounded in the attack which occurred at around 5:45 a.m. in the village of Tubigan in Maluso town. “The Abu Sayyaf attacked a group of government militiamen as a result one militiaman and nine civilians were killed,” said Army First Lieutenant Steffani Cacho, a regional military spokeswoman.

But police said 11 people were killed and ten more wounded after Moro rebels opened fire on a row of houses. It blamed the attack on the country’s largest Muslim rebel group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, which is currently negotiating peace with the government.

“MILF rebels attacked the village. Eleven people are dead and ten others were wounded,” said Senior Superintendent Antonio Mendoza, the Basilan police chief.

Mendoza said the attack was likely connected to a clan war. “The target of the rebel attack was the village chieftain,” he said, adding, the raid was connected to previous killings in the town, where rebels and militants are actively operating.

Other reports said a dozen people were killed in the raid. Mendoza said the attackers also torched several houses before retreating to the hinterlands.

Lieutenant General Benjamin Dolorfino, chief of the Western Mindanao Command, said security forces were pursuing the attacks. “There is an ongoing operation in Basilan,” he said.

Authorities previously accused the MILF of conniving with the Abu Sayyaf and in many instances the rebels fought soldiers along side with militants, an accusation strongly denied by the secessionist group, which is fighting for self-determination. (Mindanao Examiner)

Troops, rebels guilty of abuses – AI

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2 Philippine military choppers hit by enemy fire in Basilan province

A military photo shows a pilot inspecting one of two Philippine Air Force UH-1H choppers hit by enemy fire on Sunday, August 16, 2009 while flying over the southern province of Basilan, scene of a recent fighting that killed 43 soldiers and Abu Sayyaf militants. (Mindanao Examiner)

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / August 16, 2009) – Two Philippine military helicopters came under fire Sunday and were forced to land on a remote village in the southern province of Basilan, officials said.

Officials said two television cameramen for the state-run NBN Television who were filming with senior military commanders were hurt in the landing near Lamitan City.

There were no reports of serious injuries, but the choppers were hit by bullets believed fired from automatic rifles.

“The choppers, both UH1H, were flying over Lamitan when it came under fire. We still don’t know who were behind the attack – it could be the Abu Sayyaf or Moro rebels,” said Army First Lieutenant Steffani Cacho, a spokeswoman for the Western Mindanao Command.

Cacho did not say how many passengers were in the aircrafts, but among them were a marine general and his aides.

She said the choppers were heading to the Kurelem, scene of a recent fighting between government troops and Abu Sayyaf militants in the town of Ungkaya Pukan. The fighting on Wednesday killed at least 43 soldiers and militants.

No individual of group claimed responsibility for the attack that occurred at around 11.30 a.m. near the village of Tumasib. Military operations against the Abu Sayyaf still continue in Basilan, several nautical miles south of Zamboanga City. (Mindanao Examiner)

Arroyo visits wounded troops; condoles with families of slain soldiers in Mindanao

Philippine President Gloria Arroyo condoles Saturday, August 15, 2009 with the family of one of 23 soldiers slain in fierce clashes with the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf militants and Moro rebels in Basilan province. Arroyo also held a closed door command conference with senior military and defense officials at the tightly guarded Western Mindanao Command in Zamboanga City. Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro, who was with Arroyo, said the President has ordered the military to wipe out the Abu Sayyaf, blamed for the spate of terrorism and kidnappings in the southern Philippines. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / August 15, 2009) –President Gloria Arroyo arrived in Zamboanga City on Saturday and condoled with the families of soldiers killed in fierce clashes with Abu Sayyaf militants and Moro rebels in the southern province of Basilan.

Arroyo, accompanied by Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro and Armed Forces chief General Victor Ibrado, also visited wounded soldiers at a military hospital at the Western Mindanao Command headquarters where she handed cash assistance

She spoke with the families of the slain soldiers and awarded posthumous medals and money worth more than seven million pesos. Arroyo later presided over a command conference with senior military and police commanders.

Teodoro said the President ordered the military to wipe out the Abu Sayyaf, blamed for the spate of terrorism and kidnappings-for-ransom in the southern Philippines.

“The President’s order is to wipe out the Abu Sayyaf,” the Defense Secretary told reporters.

Troops on Wednesday stormed an Abu Sayyaf camp in the village of Silangkum in Basilan’s Ungkaya Pukan town, but security forces also clashed with Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels in the neighboring village of Baguindan.

The MILF said soldiers attacked its forces without provocation, an accusation denied by the military. The MILF is the country’s largest Muslim rebel group fighting for self-determination in the South. The fighting killed 23 soldiers and 20 militants and rebels. (Mindanao Examiner)

Fighting subsides in southern Philippines; military gives honors to 23 slain soldiers

Family members weep Friday, August 14, 2009 as they view the remains of a soldier inside a gym in Zamboanga City in the southern Philippines. The military says 23 soldiers and 20 Abu Sayyaf militants were killed in Wednesday fighting in Basilan province.

(Mindanao Examiner Photo Service)

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / August 14, 2009) – Fighting between troops and Moro rebels subsided in the southern Philippine province of Basilan as the military on Friday gave funeral honors to 23 soldiers killed in the clashes.

“There have been no reports of fighting in Basilan, but military operations against the Abu Sayyaf still continue,” said Marine Major General Benjamin Dolorfino, commander of military forces in Mindanao.

Troops stormed an Abu Sayyaf camp in the hinterland village of Silangkum in Ungkaya Pukan town on Wednesday and seized weapons and improvised explosives. But soldiers also clashed with a group of Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels in the neighboring village of Baguindan that sparked daylong clashes that also killed 10 gunmen.

The MILF, which is currently negotiating peace with Manila, accused government soldiers of attacking the rebels. It said troops also mutilated the bodies of three of rebels, including a senior MILF leader, killed in the clashes.

Dolorfino denied the MILF accusations. “That’s not true,” he told the Mindanao Examiner.

On Friday, Dolorfino led funeral honors for the slain soldiers in Zamboanga City along with Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro and Armed Forces chief General Victor Ibrado.

Relatives and families of killed soldiers weep as fellow soldiers pay their last respect to the fallen marines and infantrymen. Coffins of soldiers were paraded inside the Western Mindanao Command headquarters where hundreds of soldiers and civilian employees lined up a road leading to the gymnasium where the caskets are put on display for public viewing.

“What did they do to our boy? He’s such a young soldier. He doesn’t deserve this brutality,” cried one woman.

And just across the woman, family members also gathered and weeping around a coffin of a soldier, whose face was deformed because of what looked like a hack wound. Two other caskets were closed to hide the wounds in the faces of the slain soldiers, both marines.

Lieutenant Colonel Gamal Hayudini, commander of the military’s 4th Civil Relations Group, said MILF gunmen engaged government troops, who were pursuing the Abu Sayyaf, in a firefight despite an earlier coordination between the military and the rebel group.

“The government forces were confident with the on-going peace negotiation, thus, making the troops believe that nothing will really happen since the MILF was informed of the pursuit operations but unexpectedly, they engaged in firefight with our forces. The MILF should not mislead the people by always passing on the blame to the government forces,” he said.

The MILF is the country’s largest Muslim rebel group which is fighting the past three decades for self-determination.

President Gloria Arroyo opened up peace talks with the MILF in 2001 in an effort to put an end to the bloody fighting in Mindanao. (Mindanao Examiner)

Dozens killed in fighting in southern Philippines

Relatives in Zamboanga City view Thursday, August 13, 2009 the caskets of soldiers killed in fierce clashes in Basilan province in the southern Philippines. And a photo released by the military shows Western Mindanao Command chief, Major General Benjamin Dolorfino, as he pins a medal to a wounded soldier while a regional navy chief, Admiral Alexander Pama looks on, at a military hospital in Zamboanga City. Fighting in Basilan province on Wednesday left 23 soldiers dead and 20 Abu Sayyaf militants and 19 more security men wounded. (Mindanao Examiner Photo).

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / August 13, 2009) – At least 43 soldiers and militants were killed in fierce clashes in the southern Filipino province of Basilan, where security forces stormed an Abu Sayyaf camp.

The fighting, which began Wednesday, also left more than a dozen soldiers wounded in the town of Ungkaya Pukan after security forces stormed an Abu Sayyaf camp in Silangkum village.

Soldiers recovered at least 10 bodies of slain militants and improvised explosives and high-powered weapons from the Abu Sayyaf camp, said First Lieutenant Steffani Cacho, a regional army spokeswoman.

She said troops were fighting the Abu Sayyaf, blamed for the spate of terrorism and kidnappings for ransom in Basilan and nearby city of Zamboanga.

Troops on Thursday continued their hunt for the militants in the hinterland villages of Baguindan and Silangkum in the town of Ungkaya Pukan where the fighting erupted.

Military sources in Basilan said 23 soldiers, including two army lieutenants, and 20 militants were killed in the daylong fighting. The cadavers of the soldiers were brought to the Western Mindanao Command in Zamboanga City.

But Moro Islamic Liberation Front which is negotiating peace with Manila said troops also clashed with rebel forces in Baguindan village.

“Troops attacked MILF forces in the village and this triggered fierce clashes. Nine of our members and more than 20 government soldiers were killed in the fighting,” Eid Kabalu, a senior MILF leader, told the Mindanao Examiner.

Kabalu said troops ambushed a group of rebels led by Asid Sali and a firefight ensued. “Commander Sali’s group was on their way to another MILF camp when troops ambushed them and that’s it,” he said.

“The Western Mindanao Command launched a decisive law enforcement operation targeting the Abu Sayyaf main training camp in the province. Recovered from the camp were sizeable quantities of IEDs rigged to explode while others were ready for use,” Cacho said, adding at least 13 high-powered firearms were also seized by soldiers in the militant’s base.

Cacho said the MILF was informed about the offensive operation against the Abu Sayyaf. “We have coordinated with the MILF and the Coordinating Committee for the Cessation of Hostilities to avoid clashes between rebels and troops in Basilan. Our operation targeted the Abu Sayyaf,” she said.

The MILF is the country’s largest Muslim rebel group which is fighting the past three decades for self-determination. Rebels are actively operating in Basilan. (Mindanao Examiner)

Troops, cops rescue 2 kidnapped fishermen in Southern Philippines

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / July 16, 2009) – Security forces rescued two abducted fishermen after a firefight Thursday with suspected Moro rebels in the southern Philippine province of Basilan, south of Zamboanga City, the military said.

The two - Ronnie Nabi and Renante Saquien – were rescued in Akbar town after policemen, backed by soldiers stormed the village of Semut and clashed with gunmen, believed to be members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. Other reports blamed the abductions to the Abu Sayyaf and pirates.

“The fishermen are okay and they were brought to the Western Mindanao Command (in Zamboanga City) for medical examination and debriefing,” Army First Lieutenant Steffani Cacho, a regional military spokeswoman, said.

The fishermen were abducted off Basilan in March after gunmen attacked their trawler and killed three of its crew, said Basilan deputy governor Al Rasheed Sakalahul. “It is good this is over,” he said.

Senior Superintendent Salik Macapantar, the chief of staff of the police in the Muslim autonomous region, said the victims were rescued after security forces tracked down the kidnappers and eventually clashed with them.

“We have finally recovered the fishermen. There were no reports of casualties in the fighting, but the operation is going on to track down the kidnappers,” said.

Attacks on trawlers and fishermen are not uncommon at sea around Basilan because rebel groups such as the MILF and the Abu Sayyaf are actively operating in the province, just several nautical miles south of Zamboanga City.

In January, Abu Sayyaf gunmen intercepted a small boat carrying state teachers off Zamboanga City and seized the trio and brought them by boat to Basilan and freed in May after private negotiators allegedly paid huge ransoms for their liberty. (Mindanao Examiner)

Security forces alerted in Mindanao

Army soldiers and policemen man a check point near Esteros Bridge in Cotabato City and Datu Odin Sinsuat town in Maguindanao province Thursday, July 09, 2009. Four people were killed and dozens injured in a recent bomb attack outside a Catholic church in Cotabato City. Authorities blame the Indonesian terror group Jemaah Islamiya and Moro rebels for the blast. (Mindanao Examiner Photo / Mark Navales)

MAGUINDANAO, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / July 9, 2009) - Philippine security forces were alerted Thursday for more terror attacks in the troubled region of Mindanao following the spate of bombings that killed at least 6 people and wounded dozens more.

Soldiers and policemen were deployed in many areas in the Muslim autonomous region and other parts of Mindanao to thwart possible attacks by terrorists.

Cotabato and Iligan cities were bombed this week and authorities blamed Moro rebels and the Indonesian terror group Jemaah Islamiya for the attacks.

Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels denied any involvement in the series of bomb attacks in the troubled South and called for an independent investigation into the blasts.

The MILF blamed the military for the attacks, saying, it was part of a government plot to justify the possible declaration of a state of emergency by President Gloria Arroyo.

In Manila, Army Major General Jogy Fojas said they have received reports that MILF rebels, the Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiya are in the Philippine capital and were planning to carry out bombings in civilian areas and military camps.

Fojas' statement was denied by the Philippine police and militant groups branded the report as a prelude to more attacks by soldiers and blamed them to the rebels. (Mindanao Examiner)

Sayyaf hunted in Basilan province

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Kidnapped Sri Lankan peace worker freed in southern Philippines

Freed Sri Lankan peace worker Umar Jaleel rests Thursday, June 4, 2009 at a military hospital in Zamboanga City in the southern Philippines a day after he was freed by Abu Sayyaf militants in Basilan province. Jaleel, a member of the Nonviolent Peaceforce, was seized at their headquarters in Basilan province on February 13. Police said Jaleel was beaten up and fed only with root crops every three days. (Mindanao Examiner Photo Service)

BASILAN, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / June 4, 2009) – A kidnapped Sri Lankan peace worker was freed by Abu Sayyaf militants in the southern Philippines after four months in captivity, police said Thursday.

Police said Umar Jaleel, who works for the Nonviolent Peaceforce, was released late Wednesday in the village of Silangkum in Basilan’s Tipo-Tipo town.

“Umar Jaleel is frail. He is very week and could hardly walk. He suffered a lot from the hands of his captors – the Abu Sayyaf,” Senior Superintendent Salik Macapantar, the provincial police chief, told the Mindanao Examiner.

Jaleel told police that he was beaten up by the Abu Sayyaf and only fed him with root crops every three days. “Jaleel was beaten up because he could not pay ransom. He was tortured from time to time,” Macapantar said.

Jaleel was seized by the Abu Sayyaf on February 13 in their headquarters in Lamitan City also in Basilan. Jaleel's group was deployed in Basilan to monitor the implementation of the 1996 peace agreement between the government and the Moro National Liberation Front rebels.

The Brussels-based Nonviolent Peaceforce said Jaleel was freed without ransom.

“Jaleel was released through negotiations between a spokesperson for the captors and NP, with the assistance of local contacts supported by the provincial administration,” Mel Duncan, executive director for NP, said in a statement sent to the Mindanao Examiner.

“The release was accomplished nonviolently and without payment of ransom. We are grateful and relieved for the safe return of Mr. Umar Jaleel. We are thankful to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and its forces in Basilan, the Moro National Liberation Front, the crisis management committee of Basilan, the Provincial Governor of Basilan, the Consortium of Bangsamoro Civil Society, and the Armed Forces of the Philippines for their cooperation during Jaleel's captivity,” Duncan said.

Macapantar said Hajji Rashid Iklaman, a member of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front’s Bangsamoro Development Agency, negotiated with the kidnappers for the safe release of Jaleel.
“Hajji Iklaman contacted us and said that Umar Jaleel would be freed and we have coordinated with the military and the provincial government for his recovery,” he said.

The Nonviolent Peaceforce said it would continue working for peace in Basilan, several nautical miles south of Zambonga City.

“We are not discouraged by this traumatic event,” Duncan said. “This is even more reason to intensify our efforts in supporting local work that promotes peace and coexistence. NP supports the use of proven nonviolent strategies to resolve conflicts and prevent the unpredictable consequences of violence. While this has been an arduous ordeal, I urge everyone to not demonize anyone involved.”

Macapantar said the foreigner was brought to a military hospital in Zamboanga City.

“We are glad that Jaleel and his family will be reunited in Sri Lanka in the very near future,” Duncan said.

Atif Hameed, a native of Pakistan and country director for the NP Philippine project, worked on the ground using nonviolent strategies. “Atif and his staff did an excellent job monitoring the events and working without partners in supporting Jaleel,” Duncan said.

He said Jaleel, an experienced peace worker, is widely admired and respected in the area of Basilan, where he is working. He began working for NP in 2004 in Sri Lanka to resolve disputes among communities in the Trincomalee district of Sri Lanka.

Last October, he was asked to begin working in the Philippines to help improve Muslim-Christian relations and support local peace organizations and structures of peace to consolidate peace processes.

His efforts helped to strengthen the role of local civil society organizations and peace advocates in monitoring a fragile ceasefire between the Armed Forces of the Philippines and various armed groups on the island of Basilan.

NP is a non-partisan, non-sectarian and non-political organization currently has 17 international civilian peacekeepers and 22 local staff serving in the Mindanao region.

NP focuses on civilian peacekeeping through an unarmed, trained civilian peacekeeping force that works in conflict zones worldwide. They work to enable dialogue among parties in conflict and provide proactive presence for civilians and communities at risk, and to contribute towards consolidating structures of peace at the grassroots level of society.

Its members include veterans of conflict zones and experienced peacekeepers. With its international headquarters in Brussels and administrative office in Minneapolis, NP has worked in the conflict areas of Sri Lanka as well as the Philippines and Guatemala. (Mindanao Examiner)

Kidnapped farm owner rescued in Basilan province

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Apr. 21, 2009) – Police stormed a rebel hideout and rescued a kidnapped farm owner in the southern province of Basilan, where five more hostages, including a Sri Lankan peace worker are still being held captive.

Police said Hernald Chavez was rescued at around 8 p.m. Monday in the village of Magkawa in Al-Barka town, but his five captors managed to escape.

Rebels seized 22-year old Chavez on April 10 together with Cosme Aballes, who later killed by Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels and Abu Sayyaf militants.

“Chavez has been rescued and there is an operation to track down his kidnappers,” said Senior Superintendent Salik Macapantar, the provincial police chief.

Macapantar said about 40 gunmen were involved in the kidnapping of Chavez and Aballes and tagged Abu Sayyaf commander Puruji Indama and Inting Ramos and MILF leader Usman Lidjal as among those who led the attack.

He said police and military are also searching for five more hostages - government teachers Quizon Freires, 28; Janette Delos Reyes, 29; and Rafael L. Mayonado, 24, kidnapped in January in Zamboanga City and a lending firm collector Leah Patris, seized near Basilan’s Maluso town and a Sri Lankan national, Umar Jaleel, a member of the international peace advocate group called Nonviolent Peaceforce, both were kidnapped in February.

The Abu Sayyaf is a small band of militants blamed for the country's worst terrorist attacks and is still holding an Italian Red Cross worker Eugenio Vagni who was seized in January in Sulu province. While the MILF s the Philippines’ largest Muslim rebel group. (Mindanao Examiner)

Moro rebels execute one of two hostages in southern Philippines

BASILAN, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Apr. 13, 2009) – Suspected Moro rebels executed one of their two hostages as security forces continue to pursue them in the jungle of Basilan province in the southern Philippines, police said Monday.

Police said villagers found the body of Cosme Aballes, 54, in the hinterlands near Lamitan City on Friday. Local television reports said Aballes head was almost decapitated.

The fate of another hostage, Hernald Chavez, 22, remains unknown, said Senior Superintendent Salik Macapantar, the provincial police chief.

“There is an ongoing operation and troops are pursuing the lawless elements,” he said, referring to the Abu Sayyaf and Moro Islamic Liberation Front tagged by the police and military as behind the April 10 abductions.

Police said the rebels raided a farm and killed one worker in the remote village of Upper Arco in Lamitan City. The motive of the attack was unknown and the MILF said it would verify the reports.

Macapantar said about 40 gunmen were involved in the raid and he tagged Abu Sayyaf commander Puruji Indama and Inting Ramos and MILF leader Usman Lidjal as among those who led the attack.

Sporadic clashes, he said, were also reported over the weekend between troops and rebels, but it was not immediately known whether there were casualties on the rebel side. (Mindanao Examiner)

Security forces battled kidnappers in Zamboanga City

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2 MILF Rebels Killed In Basilan Clash

ISABELA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Feb. 09, 2009) – Marine soldiers clashed with Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels before dawn Monday, killing two gunmen in the southern Filipino province of Basilan, where security forces are pursuing kidnappers holding six hostages, officials said.

Officials said the fighting erupted at around 2 a.m. in the town of Akbar after marines searching for the captives came under fire from rebel forces.

Two rebels killed in the fighting and that troops recovered their bodies, including two automatic rifles and grenades.

Officials said those killed were wearing MILF uniform and patches with markings “Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces,” the military wing of the rebel group which has been fighting for the establishment of a separate Muslim homeland in Mindanao.

The MILF has denied those killed were rebels, but kidnappers. “They were members of a kidnapped-for-ransom gang under a certain Commander Pula. They were not MILF rebels and they were killed in an ambush staged by the military,” Eid Kabalu, a senior MILF leader, told the Mindanao Examiner.

Kabalu said three kidnappers were killed in the ambush.

Marine Brigadier General Rustico Guerrero said soldiers were tracking down the kidnappers who are allied with the MILF. He said the gangs are still holding six people – a boy and a lending firm employee seized in Basilan and three teachers and a bakery owner kidnapped in Zamboanga City and brought to the province.

“There is an ongoing operation and we are tracking down the kidnappers and their innocent victims,” he said in a separate interview. (Mindanao Examiner)

Kidnappers free nursing student in Basilan island

The parents of freed nursing student Joed Anthony Pilangga during a news conference with other families of kidnapped victims on Friday, Nov. 7, 2008 in Zamboanga City. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Dec. 24, 2008) – Kidnappers freed late Wednesday a Filipino nursing student after more than two months in captivity in the southern Philippine island of Basilan, officials said.

Officials said Joed Pilangga, 17, was released in the town of Al-Barka at around 9 p.m. “He is okay and with me right now. We will hand over Joed Pilangga to the police and military authorities tomorrow,” the island’s deputy governor Al Rasheed Sakalahul told the radio network RMN-Radyo Agong in Zamboanga City.

Sakalahul did not say how much ransom was paid for Pilangga’s freedom, but the kidnappers had previously demanded P20 million ransoms in exchange for his safe release.

The politician said the hostage was released to his emissaries after a series of negotiations.

Pilangga was kidnapped Oct. 17 in Zamboanga City and brought to Basilan island.

Authorities have tagged the Abu Sayyaf as behind the kidnapping. The group is still holding a nine-year old girl, who was kidnapped Nov. 26 in Basilan’s Lamitan City and demanded P4 million for her freedom.

Pilangga said his captors had repeatedly threatened to kill him if they did not get the ransom. “I was really scared. They threatened to kill me if they did not get what they wanted,” he said.

He said the kidnappers fed him fish, vegetables and noodles during his 68-day ordeal in the hinterlands of Basilan. “I am so excited to see my family. I want to see them and be with them,” he said.

Pilangga briefly spoke with his mother Lucy after the radio network contacted his family in Zamboanga City. “Mum, I am okay. Wait for me tomorrow and I am coming home,” he said.

Early this month, gunmen also kidnapped seven construction workers in Basilan, but freed all of them a week later after Lamitan City Mayor Roderick Furigay negotiated for their release.

Gunmen seized the seven workers after stopping a lorry near Tuburan town on December 1. Authorities initially blamed the Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels in the kidnappings, but apparently it was carried out by a small criminal gang wanted to get ransom, other sources said.

Two more people were people were kidnapped by unidentified gunmen on December 2 near Maluso town also in Basilan island, but they had been freed three days later, said Sakalahul.

Military offensive since early this month have targeted the Abu Sayyaf, but the larger rebel group, Moro Islamic Liberation Front, had been dragged into the skirmishes after it accused government troops of attacking its positions on the island.

In retaliation, the rebels launched a series of attacks against government forces, sparking sporadic, but fierce fighting killing five marines and wounding two dozen soldiers in Al-Barka town.

The military accused the MILF of coddling Abu Sayyaf terrorists and vowed to step up the operation against the militants.

More than a dozen people had been kidnapped by suspected Abu Sayyaf militants headed by Puruji Indama and Nur Hassan Jamiri in recent months and most of them had been freed in exchange for huge ransoms.

Locals blamed the police and military authorities in Basilan, one of six provinces under the Muslim autonomous region, for their failure to secure the safety of the civilians. (Mindanao Examiner)

MILF rebels attack village, kill 3 in Mindanao

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Dec. 13, 2008) – Suspected Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels attacked Saturday a village in the southern Philippine island of Basilan, killing two government militias and woman, officials said.

Officials said three more civilians were seized by rebels, using them as shield against pursuing soldiers in the outskirts of Lamitan City. The rebels were led by MILF commander Usman, whose base is in Tipo-Tipo town.

“The rebels opened on houses and killing two militias and a woman,” Mayor Roderick Furigay was quoted as saying.

Nick Castro, the mayor’s aide, identified those killed as Nonie Sahilon, Cesar Alberto and his wife Dahlia Alberto. “The attack forced more than 120 families to flee their homes and sought shelter to safer areas. Mayor Furigay already sent aid workers to assist the refugees,” he said told the Mindanao Examiner.

Castro said many of those who fled their homes are staying at the Balobo Elementary School.

But the military blamed the attack on the Abu Sayyaf group. Our reports said the Abu Sayyaf was responsible for the attack,” said Lt. Steffani Cacho, a spokeswoman for the Western Mindanao Command headquarters, based in Zamboanga City.

She said the Abu Sayyaf is holding the three civilians. “They are being used as human shield by the Abu Sayyaf. The operation against the Abu Sayyaf is going on,” she told reporters.

The military accused the MILF of sheltering the Abu Sayyaf, but rebel leaders denied the allegations and said security forces were just using the operations against the militant group to attack them.

Peace talks between the MILF and the Arroyo government collapsed after the failed signing of the Muslim ancestral domain accord in August. Since then, fighting erupted in many areas in the southern Philippines despite a seven-year old truce.

President Gloria Arroyo opened up peace talks with the MILF in 2001 in an effort to end more than three decades of bloody secessionist war in Mindanao, a region rich in natural resources. (Mindanao Examiner)

Grenade explosion kills 2 marines in Basilan Island

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