Abu Sayyaf militants behead captive schoolteacher in Philippines

Mania: Officials say Al Qaeda-linked militants in the southern Philippines have beheaded a schoolteacher whom they kidnapped on a restive island.

Regional military commander Maj. Gen. Benjamin Dolorfino says the severed head of 36-year-old Gabriel Canizares was left in a bag at a gas station on Jolo Island early Monday, three weeks after suspected Abu Sayyaf militants stopped a passenger minibus and dragged him away in front of his colleagues.

The militants, notorious for bombings, ransom kidnappings and beheadings, were reportedly demanding a ransom of 2 million pesos ($42,000).

The Abu Sayyaf is believed to have about 400 fighters and is accused of sheltering militants from the larger Southeast Asian terrorist group Jemaah Islamiyah.