German hostage in Philippines Killed Tragedy
Video purportedly shows beheading of German hostage in Philippines
Posted on 27 February 2017 - 07:27pm
Last updated on 27 February 2017 - 07:50pm
Last updated on 27 February 2017 - 07:50pm
MANILA: A video shot by Islamist militants purportedly shows the beheading of a German hostage held for three months in the southern Philippines.
The video, released in chat groups of Islamic State supporters on Monday, showed the 70-year-old captive slumped on a grassy lot and a man holding a knife to his neck.
"Now they'll kill me," the German man said before he was executed on Sunday after a ransom demand deadline passed.
The Philippine military declined to confirm the beheading. The video "is not enough" proof that the execution took place, said Brigadier General Restituto Padilla, a spokesman for the military.
When asked if he has seen the video, he replied: "No, I have not and I will not dignify the video by watching it."
The Abu Sayyaf group demanded 30 million pesos (RM2,665,800) be paid by Sunday afternoon or they would behead the captive who was seized on Nov 5 from his yacht of the southern Philippines.
Colonel Edgard Arevalo, another spokesman for the military, said the troops were making every effort to find the body of the German.
"We have sought the help of local governments and the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in looking for the body of the latest victim of the Abu Sayyaf," he said.
"Until we find the body of the victim, we still hold on to the hope (that he is still alive) and we will continue to conduct combat operations," he added.
The MNLF is a rebel group that signed a peace agreement with the government in 1996 and is based on the island of Jolo, 1,000km south of Manila.
According to intelligence reports, the beheading of the German national took place in a village in the town of Indanan on Jolo.
The militants shot dead the man's 59-year-old wife after she fought back. Her body was left in the boat.
Last year, the Abu Sayyaf beheaded two Canadian nationals after they did not receive ransom for the two hostages.
The Canadians were abducted in Sept 2015 with a Norwegian man and a Filipino woman, who were later both freed separately.
The Philippine government has a no-ransom policy and discourages payments by other parties, but has not been able to stop such payoffs in past instances.
The Abu Sayyaf militants are believed to be holding captive more than 20 other hostages in the southern Philippines.
Aside from undertaking kidnappings for ransom, the Abu Sayyaf group has been blamed for some of the worst terrorist attacks in the Philippines.
President Rodrigo Duterte has directed the military to crush the militant group and warned that it could be a source of recruitment for the Islamic State extremist militia. — dpa
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