Two kidnapped Malaysians freed in Philippines after apparently being abandoned as their captors with ties to al-Qaida linked Abu Sayyaf flee pursuing police commandos

From AP

Filipino gunmen with ties to al-Qaida-linked militants, under pressure from pursuing police commandos, have freed [abandoned, apparently getting any ransom] two Malaysian laborers [Chen Yui Chung, 48, and Lai Wong Chun, 46,] from 10 months of jungle captivity, police said Wednesday.

The hostages were seized Feb. 8 from a seaweed farm in Malaysia's Sabah state and whisked away in a speedboat to nearby Philippine waters in a pattern similar to past kidnappings-for-ransom blamed on the notorious terrorist group Abu Sayyaf.

The Abu Sayyaf has gained notoriety for high-profile kidnappings, beheadings and bomb attacks. Battle setbacks, arrests and surrenders have reduced the group's strength to more than 300 from more than 1,000 guerrillas during its heyday in 2000, the military says.

That year the militants abducted 21 Asian workers and Western tourists from Malaysia's Sipadan diving resort and brought them to Jolo. They were freed in batches in exchange for huge ransoms.


Philippine Daily Inquirer 1

The kidnappers, sometimes numbering eight, other times 10, looked to a man named “Ahmad” as their leader, he said. Most of them spoke Tausug, said Lai, but a few could speak to the captives in Malay.


Philippine Daily Inquirer 2

[The Philippine National Police (PNP) spokesman Chief Supt. Agrimero Cruz said] the bandits were “reportedly composed of Malaysian and some Tausug-speaking suspects” and have ties with local terror group the Abu Sayyaf.

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Source: AP, Philippine Daily Inquirer (1,2)

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Comments: The usual Muslims kidnapping for ransom, just like the Somali pirates and elsewhere. It's a global problem.

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Some previous similar or related stories:

Still no sign of Somali Christian convert girl kidnapped by al Shabaab [Kidnapped for converting to Christianity]

Somali pirates get a record US 9 million dollars in ransom for oil tanker Samho Dream, and are getting more violent [Piracy, kidnap and demand for ransom]

Al-Qaeda in North Africa (AQIM), shopping for weapons with kidnap ransom money [Kidnappings for ransom to fund terror]

Update: Linda Norgrove killed by grenade thrown by rescuers during rescue attempt in Afghanistan [It's the kidnappers' fault that she died.]

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