Military rescues Abu Sayyaf hostages

By Amit Baruah

SINGAPORE, AUG. 5 The Philippine military today rescued 13 Filipino hostages after a gun battle with Abu Sayyaf bandits in the southern island of Basilan in the early hours of Sunday.

Reports from the area said that among those rescued, seven were children, aged between nine and 12.

They were among 36 villagers taken hostage by the Abu Sayyaf on Thursday. Ten of the 36 were beheaded by the Abu Sayyaf, which claims to be a group fighting for independence from Manila. Thirteen others managed to escape or were released earlier.

Gruesome tales about the beheadings were given by those rescued following the encounter between the military and Abu Sayyaf fighters.

One of them referred to the killing of a hostage, who wanted that his hands be loosened so that he could eat. ``He asked them to loosen the tie around his hands because he wanted to eat....then he fought back and tried to grab their guns so he was shot and hacked to death,'' Harold Husain, a nine-year-old, was quoted as telling reporters.

``These Abu Sayyaf are bandits from their toenails to their hair. They are no longer human beings. They are dogs,'' Mr. Wahab Akbar, Basilan's Governor, said.

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Section  : International
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