Justin Trudeau outrage at 'cold-blooded murder' of hostage

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by Coco Jiang and Biodun Iginla, BBC News, Manila/Ottawa

• From the section Asia

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Media captionCanada's PM Justin Trudeau described the killing as "cold-blooded murder"

The Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has condemned the killing of a Canadian hostage kidnapped by Islamist militants in the Philippines.

John Ridsdel, 68, was taken from a tourist resort with three others by the Abu Sayyaf group in September 2015.
In November, the Islamist militants released a video showing Mr Ridsdel and three other captives, and demanded a ransom of $80m (£55m).
Mr Trudeau called his death "an act of cold-blooded murder".

Image copyright AFP

Image caption John Ridsdel, 68, was a former mining executive

On Monday, a severed head was found on remote Jolo, hours after the Abu Sayyaf ransom deadline expired. Local authorities said it belonged to a foreign man but have not confirmed whether it belonged to any of the captives.

Mr Ridsdel was taken to Jolo after being kidnapped from a marina near the city of Davao, along with another Canadian, Robert Hall; a Norwegian, Kjartan Sekkingstad; and a Philippine woman, Mr Hall's girlfriend, Marites Flor.
Mr Ridsdel later warned in a video released by the group that he was due to be killed on 25 April if no ransom was paid.
Confirming the death of Mr Ridsdel, Mr Trudeau called it a "heinous act".
"Canada condemns without reservation the brutality of the hostage-takers, and this unnecessary death. This was an act of cold blooded murder and responsibility rests squarely with the terrorist group who took him hostage," he said in a statement.

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What is Abu Sayyaf?

• One of smallest but most radical of Islamic separatist groups in southern Philippines, its name means "bearer of the sword" in Arabic.
• Split off from the larger Moro National Liberation Front in 1991 to wage more fundamentalist battle in predominantly Catholic Philippines.
• Previously linked to al-Qaeda, its leaders have recently declared allegiance to the so-called Islamic State.
• Known for abducting civilians, including foreigners, to demand ransoms.
• Also blamed for Philippines' worst terror attacks including a ferry bombing in 2004 in Manila Bay that killed more than 100 people.

Islamic State threat in Southeast Asia

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Former mining executive

"It's hard," a friend of Mr Ridsdel, Bob Rae, told CBC News. "It's just very hard. I've been involved behind the scenes for the last six months trying to find a solution and it's been very painful."
A former mining executive, Mr Ridsdel is described by Canadian media as semi-retired. He also worked as a journalist.
Abu Sayyaf was set up in the 1990s with funding from al-Qaeda, and is fighting for an independent Islamic province in the Philippines.
One of its commanders recently pledged allegiance to militant group calling itself Islamic State. Abu Sayyaf is also holding several other foreigners.
Eighteen Philippine soldiers were killed in clashes with the militants on Basilan island near Jolo island earlier this month.

Related Topics

• Islamic State group
• Canada
• Philippines

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Philippine soldiers killed in operation against Islamist militants

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© Mark Navales, AFP | Archival picture shows Philippine soldiers on an operation against Islamic militants in the southern Philippine island of Mindanao on March 1, 2016

Latest update : 2016-04-10

by Coco Jiang and Biodun Iginla, France24 and BBC News, Manila

A Philippine offensive against the extremist Abu Sayyaf group after a spate of kidnappings has left 18 soldiers and five fighters dead in the worst violence in the troubled south this year, authorities said Sunday.

Saturday's clashes on the strife-torn island of Basilan came after an April 8 ransom deadline set by Abu Sayyaf, who had threatened to behead some of their foreign hostages.

At least four soldiers were beheaded in the fighting which involved about a hundred Abu Sayyaf, regional military spokesman Major Filemon Tan said.

"This is part of the military operations against the Abu Sayyaf," launched after a series of abductions of foreigners, he told reporters.

Another military spokesman said the soldiers were on their way to attack an Abu Sayyaf hideout when they were ambushed.

"Our group was heading to attack them. On the way, they were ambushed," Colonel Benedict Manquiquis, spokesman for the unit involved in the battle, told radio station DZRH.

"The enemy had the high ground so no matter where our soldiers fled to seek cover, they could still be hit by the heavy firepower and improvised explosive devices of the members of the Abu Sayyaf group," he said.

Major Tan said that 53 soldiers and about 20 Abu Sayyaf had also been wounded in the violence but he did not give details.

The clash came shortly after a retired Italian priest being held hostage by the Abu Sayyaf was freed on Friday.

Last month the Abu Sayyaf posted a video to their Facebook page in which a Norwegian and two Canadian hostages said they would be killed if the ransom was not paid.

While the ransom amount was not specified, the militants in an earlier video demanded one billion pesos ($21 million) for each of the three foreigners.

Since the April 8 ransom deadline passed there has been no word on the hostages' fate.

The Abu Sayyaf is a small group of militants known for kidnapping foreigners and demanding huge ransoms.

Eighteen other foreign hostages are being held in the Philippines, most or all of them thought to be in the hands of the Abu Sayyaf.

The group was established in the early 1990s with seed money from Osama bin Laden's Al Qaeda network.

It has been blamed for the country's worst terror attacks, including a 2004 Manila Bay ferry bombing that claimed 116 lives.

Its leaders have in recent years pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group that controls vast swathes of Iraq and Syria.

They are based in the southern islands of Basilan and Jolo which both have large Muslim populations.

Various Muslim separatist insurgencies in the southern Philippines have claimed more than 100,000 lives since the 1970s.