Abu Sayyaf kidnap four Indonesians

Gunmen, believed to be from the Abu Sayyaf extremist group, abducted four Indonesian crew members from a tugboat between the southern Philippine islands of Jolo and Basilan, strongholds of extremists notorious for kidnapping, officials said yesterday.

Eleven men wearing military fatigues and riding in three speedboats stopped the tugboat, which was pulling a barge, fired warning shots in the air and forced the captain and three officers into their boats on Monday evening, said Philippine navy chief Vice Admiral Victorino Hingco.

They were believed to be the members of the hostage-taking Abu Sayyaf Group as the incident took place at 45 nautical miles from Zamboanga City.

The gunmen left six junior crew members in the tugboat, which was pulling a coal-laden barge on a two-week run from Indonesia to the central Philippine city of Cebu, said Sthillainathan Thillai, a manager for the vessel's Singaporean owner.

Defence spokesman Melchor Rosales said the kidnapped victims were identified as Captain Muntu Jacobus Winowatan, Chief Engineer Pieter Lernch, Chief Petty Officer Julkipli, and Chief Mate Ferdinand Jowel.

The gunmen fled with their captives toward Jolo island, where troops, backed by two MG520 assault helicopters were put on alert, said Maj. Gen. Ernesto Carolina, who heads the southern Philippine military forces.

The six junior crew members travelled northward aboard the barge and were found by Philippine navy SEAL commandos near an island off Basilan province shortly after midnight Tuesday, Hingco said.

Carolina declined to speculate on who was responsible for the abduction, the latest in a series of high-profile abductions that have plagued the islands and seas in the country's impoverished south for years.

Thillai said that no ransom demands had been made as of yesterday morning. In the vast seas infested with pirates, smugglers and bandits, "anything can happen," Carolina told reporters.

Jolo and nearby Basilan are inhabited by the Abu Sayyaf, a band of extremist guerrillas who have abducted three Americans and almost 100 Filipinos in the past year.

The Abu Sayyaf recently lost the last of a group of 20 hostages captured more than a year ago, raising speculation that they might strike again to gain human shields against a U.S.-backed campaign by the Philippine army to wipe them out.

The tugboat and barge were reported missing late Monday by their Singaporean owner, Labroy Shipping, and were found and secured yesterday by two navy patrol boats, said Coast Guard district commander Capt. Damian Carlos. The remaining crew members were to tow the barge to a port to the port city of Zamboanga escorted by navy ships.

The Abu Sayyaf, who have been linked to the Al Qaida terrorist network, are known for carrying out seaborne raids and have donned army uniforms in the past to conceal their identity.

In an ambush June 7 in the southern province of Zamboanga del Norte, elite Filipino soldiers managed to rescue an American missionary held by the rebels but her husband and a local nurse were killed by gunfire in circumstances that remain unclear.

Military officers warned after the rescue that the Abu Sayyaf would likely try to seize more hostages to prevent the government from intensifying attacks.

The rebels' numbers have dwindled to less than 100 on Basilan following a year-long campaign by the Philippine army with logistical support by U.S. forces.

About 1,000 U.S. troops are in the southern Philippines to train, advise and improve infrastructure for soldiers fighting the Abu Sayyaf.

Sources said World Mariners Inc. contracted the tugboat and the barge to transport some 7,799 metric tones of coal from Indonesia, which was sold by Singapore-based Noble Energy to a company in Naga, Cebu, central Philippines. The six crewmen who could not operate the ill-fated tugboat and barge managed to send messages to the Philippines Navy.

NV Sultan Kudarat of the Philippines Navy came to the rescue and towed the "captain-less" vessels to nearby Zamboanga City.

A coast guard spokesman said after the abduction, the towboat and the barge were seen floating near Tamuk island off Basilan, also an Abu Sayyaf stronghold.