THE Abu Sayyaf is demanding P1 billion each for the release of two Canadians and a Norwegian kidnapped six weeks ago, a new video of the captives shows.
In the video released by the US-based jihadist monitor SITE on Tuesday, the masked captors identified themselves as members of the Abu Sayyaf, a US-listed terrorist group notorious for kidnappings, beheadings and deadly bomb attacks.
Canadian tourists John Ridsdel and Robert Hall, Norwegian resort manager Kjartan Sekkingstad and Filipina Marites Flor were seized from yachts at a marina in Davao on Sept. 21.
Authorities have said they do not know where the hostages are being held. But security analysts say they are likely on Jolo island, the Abu Sayyaf’s stronghold.
In the SITE video, the three foreigners all said they were being ransomed off for P1 billion each. They were speaking in a jungle setting, surrounded by heavily armed men.
Flor, who is Hall’s girlfriend, did not speak.
“We’re being ransomed for one billion pesos each,” Ridsdel said as a man held a machete above his neck. “I appeal to the Canadian Prime Minister and the people of Canada, please pay this ransom as soon as possible or our lives are in great danger.”
Hall pleaded: “I’m a Canadian citizen. I’m being held hostage by Abu Sayyaf for one billion pesos. These people are serious and very treacherous. Take them seriously. Help us, get us out of here.”
Founded in the early 1990s with seed money from Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden, the Abu Sayyaf gained international notoriety for kidnapping dozens of foreign tourists for ransom in the early 2000s.
The group has also been blamed for the country’s worst terrorist attacks, including the bombing of a ferry off Manila Bay in 2004 that killed more than 100 people.
It is believed to have just a few hundred gunmen, but thrives in lawless sections of Mindanao where Muslim rebels have for decades fought for independence or autonomy.
The Abu Sayyaf is known to be holding three other foreigners—two Malaysians and a Dutch man, according to the military.
An Italian ex-priest, Rolando del Torchio, was also abducted from his pizza restaurant in the southern port city of Dipolog last month.
The Abu Sayyaf is widely believed to be holding him, but authorities have not confirmed this.
And a 74-year-old South Korean kidnapped in January was found dead on Jolo at the weekend. The military said the Abu Sayyaf abandoned the hostage after he died from a “severe illness.”
Armed Forces spokesman Col. Restituto Padilla declined to comment about the new video.
The government has repeatedly said it has a “no-ransom policy” but parties linked to captives frequently pay.
In October last year, the Abu Sayyaf claimed it received P250 million in exchange for two German hostages they held captive for six months. Security analysts said a large ransom was paid.
Philippine National Police spokesman Chief Supt. Wilben Mayor said the police were evaluating the video and stressed that the government does not pay ransoms.
He said the police and the military were doing all they could to ensure the safety of the victims. With AFP