Philippine Troops Rescue Captive from Abu Sayyaf Militants

Members of the militant group are shown in the jungle in southern Philippines in this undated photo released by Philippine government.

 
Zamboanga City, Philppines, 26 Jumadil Akhir 1438/25 March 2017 (MINA) – Troops rescued the tugboat captain Saturday dawn after three days of relentless pursuit operations in a village of Basilan, security official said.

Colonel Juvymax Uy, commander of the 104th Brigade and Joint Task Force Basilan (JTFB), was quoted by Philstar as saying that the troops rescued tugboat captain Aurelio Agacac about 5:30 a.m. Saturday at Barangay Basakan, Mohmmad Ajul.

“The troops recovered the tugboat captain who was hastily abandoned by his captors because of the relentless pursuit by our forces on the ground,” Uy said.

The rescued victim was immediately transported by the Navy from Basilan to the Naval Forces Western Mindanao (NFWM) and brought to Camp Navarro General Hospital (CNGH) Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom) in Zamboanga City for medical check-up.

Agacac was subsequently presented to Westmincom chief Maj. Gen. Carlito Galvez Jr. and was debriefed to determine other details of the suspects.

Uy said troops continued its relentless hunt to rescue the other victim, Laurencio Tiro.

Abu Sayyaf, a small but violent Islamist group known for kidnappings, beheadings, bombings and extortion, is still holding a number of Filipino and foreign nationals captive, including some Indonesians and Malaysians.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has threatened to impose martial law in the south, home to the majority of Filipino Muslims, to address the security problem there. (T/RS5/RS1)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)