20 abducted from Philippines resort

Celeste Anna Formoso

Puerto Princesa, May 27: Gunmen, believed to be Muslim rebels, seized 20 people, including two American missionaries, in a dawn raid on a tourist resort in the southern Philippines Island on Sunday, officials said. A third American and 17 Filipinos were also seized in another raid on Dos Palmas resort off Palawan Island.

Hours after the attack, a motorboat thought to be carrying the gunmen and their hostages was spotted by military aircraft near the maritime border with Malaysia, National Security Advisor Roilo Golez said. ‘‘We are conducting pursuit operations... We have deployed Navy vessels in the area,’’ Golez said. ‘‘They are travelling slowly apparently because of the many people on board.’’

Manila had cautioned Kuala Lumpur that the gunmen might try to slip into Malaysian territory ‘‘and therefore the Malaysian navy was stepping up its border patrol’’, a military spokesman said.

Two of the kidnapped foreigners are an American couple who have been working with minority groups in the Philippines for over 15 years and were on a holiday at the resort, their group New Tribes Mission said in a statement.

The military described the raiders as terrorists while a police official said they were believed to be Muslim separatist Abu Sayyaf rebels.

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo issued a statement condemning the raid as a ‘‘dastardly criminal act by ruthless bandits’’.

Military officials at first said two of the kidnapped tourists were American and the third was from Spain but police and presidential spokesman Rigoberto Tiglao later said all three were American.
Thirteen domestic tourists, including an eight-year-old boy, and four resort guards and staff were also abducted. The masked men, armed with a machinegun and assault rifles, raided the resort on Arrecifi Island near the Palawan provincial capital Puerto Princesa at about 5 am (0230 IST), police said. Holding resort guards at gunpoint, some of the raiders broke into the cottages where tourists were sleeping and grabbed them.

‘‘It all happened very quickly. Everyone was stunned and no one could talk... It was all over in 15 to 20 minutes,’’ said resort security officer Rudy Gordono.

Dos Palmas officials said there were about 100 tourists on the resort when the gunmen, riding in a speedboat, slipped into the dock and held two guards at gunpoint.

Golez told Reuters Television the government had not received any ransom demands. ‘‘But if ransom or money is their primary objective, we would like to reiterate to them the no-ransom policy of the government,’’ he said. ‘‘We are not sure yet if they are Abu Sayyaf.’’ (Reuters)