ZAMBOANGA CITY – Security forces shot dead 3 Abu Sayyaf terrorists, including a notorious leader, and rescued an Indonesian hostage following a firefight Sunday on Kalupag Island off Languyan town in the southern Philippine of Tawi-Tawi, officials said.
Officials said the 15-year hostage, Mohamad Khairuldin, is now in the hands of the Filipino military in Tawi-Tawi.
“With the relentless efforts of the AFP and PNP, the last kidnap victim in captivity was rescued from his abductors in Tawi-Tawi,” said Lt. Gen. Corleto Vinluan, Jr., chief of the Western Mindanao Command
He said Abu Sayyaf leader, Apo Mike whose real name was Majan Sahidjuan, and two other gunmen were killed by security forces. “We are happy that all the hostages are safe now and we are also able to neutralize the notorious “Apo Mike” and two of his comrades,” Vinluan said.
Sahidjuan was among those behind the spate of border kidnapping and hijacking of Malaysian and Indonesian trawlers off Sabah and Tawi-Tawi.
The rescued Indonesian was among 5 fishermen kidnapped by the Abu Sayyaf off Tambisan waters in Lahad Datu town in Sabah near the Philippine border in January 2020.
Eight gunmen hijacked their trawler and kidnapped five of the eight crew members, one of the hostages was identified by the Indonesian news agency Antara as Arsyad Abdullah, the boat’s skipper.
On Friday, three other kidnapped Indonesian fishermen were also rescued by soldiers and policemen after their boat capsized off South Ubian town near Languyan town while fleeing from a military operation in nearby Sulu province.
The trio - Riswanto Bin Hayono, Arical Kastamiran, and Arsyad Bin Dahalan – are now in the custody of the military. Two of their 5 Abu Sayyaf escorts - Sahud Salisim alias Ben Wagas and Bensal Jakare – were captured.
Vinluan said one of the Indonesian hostages whom he did not name was killed by the Abu Sayyaf in September last year while trying to escape.
Brig. Gen. Arturo Rojas, commander of the Joint Task Force Tawi-Tawi, said the Abu Sayyaf terrorists are now on the run due to ongoing military operations against them in Sulu.
The Indonesian government has been notified by the rescue of the hostages who are now under the custody of the Marine Battalion Landing Team 6 in Tawi-Tawi province.
Maj. Gen. William Gonzales, commander of the 11th Infantry Division in Sulu province, said the operations against the pro-ISIS group are going on. “We continuously bolstered our offensives to pressure the Abu Sayyaf to release the hostages which forced them to look for a safer refuge,” he said. (Mindanao Examiner)
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