Posted on 05/01/2002 8:11:22 AM PDT by DittoJed2
Philippine Militants Threaten U.S. Missionaries
By OLIVER TEVES .c The Associated Press
ZAMBOANGA, Philippines (May 1) - A Muslim extremist group threatened Wednesday to kill an American missionary couple it is holding hostage, saying it is no longer interested in negotiations.
The message from Abu Sabaya, a leader of the Abu Sayyaf group, came just days after he said the al-Qaida-linked rebels were open to ``last deal'' talks. The government responded by ruling out ransom and saying it only would negotiate the unconditional surrender of the Abu Sayyaf and the release of its hostages.
The Abu Sayyaf is holding Martin and Gracia Burnham of Wichita, Kan., and Filipino nurse Ediborah Yap, the last hostages from a kidnapping spree that began May 27. They are being held on jungle-covered Basilan island in the southern Philippines.
``We are accepting the challenge of the Philippine government,'' Sabaya told Radio Mindanao Network, apparently by satellite telephone. ``Today, it's one year now; the door is closed for negotiations. It's up to them if they want to look for the dead bodies.''
Asked if that meant the Burnhams will be killed, Sabaya said: ``That depends. For example, if we see that the fight is getting one-sided, maybe we will just say goodbye to these two.''
Sabaya made a similar statement shortly before the group beheaded another American, Guillermo Sobero, in July. Sabaya had called the execution a birthday present to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.
The Philippine military said it was intensifying its efforts to destroy the remnants of the Abu Sayyaf, which by government estimates is down to a few dozen fighters on Basilan.
``We cannot operate in an environment where we are being threatened, so the military will not be cowed by this threat from Abu Sabaya, whether this threat is true or not,'' said Lt. Col. Danilo Servando, spokesman for the Philippine Southern Command.
Last week, Martin Burnham's father, Paul, said the Abu Sayyaf reneged on a March 13 agreement to release the three hostages by adding new, unspecified conditions. He refused to comment on rumors that some ransom already had been paid.
``We are just hoping that something will work out so that they can get out as soon as possible,'' he said.
Sabaya earlier denied U.S. reports that his group had received $300,000 in ransom.
He said Wednesday that the U.S. and Philippine governments had spent millions trying to end the hostage crisis, while the Abu Sayyaf's demands are probably ``less than what a wing of a C-17 costs.''
``We prefer to prolong the hostage crisis and to give more embarrassment to the superpower and the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines),'' he said. ``They cannot do anything to us.''
``Look what happened to al-Qaida,'' Sabaya said, apparently referring to the terrorist network's continued survival despite the U.S. attacks in Afghanistan.
The United States has sent about 1,000 soldiers, including 160 from the Special Forces, for a six-month mission to train Filipino troops to better fight the Abu Sayyaf and to work on supporting construction projects.
Philippine officials claim the guerrillas have been using the hostages as human shields, complicating rescue efforts.
05/01/02 05:35 EDT
Copyright 2002 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. All active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.
BUMP
Message to the Abu Sayaf - kill the Burnhams and reap the whirlwind.
Strengthen the hearts of the Burnhams and the nurse, and those who seek to rescue them. I speak peace and confidence into the captives in Jesus' Name, and error, terror and mistakes into those who have held them captive in horrible conditions for almost a year. Father, grab the fingers and thumbs of the monster of oppression in this situation and pull them back; spring the trap the workers of iniquity have laid for these innocents, and propel them out of it. Send them safely on their way to freedom. Let there be no missteps in their way to escape. Bless them now with hope and the knowledge of how to escape when the trap is sprung.
Change the hearts of the captors to make them incapable of wanting to kill their captives. Cause the captors to care more about saving their own lives than taking their captives' lives. Only by Your grace can this happen! Lord, as You did in times of old for israel, send now messages of conflict elsewhere, or the sound of angels massing to fight for the captives, or any such plan that will draw the terrorists away from their victims. Spring this trap, O God, and deliver their prey safely into Your hands!
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