ROUNDUP: Hostage Crisis Over, Anti-Terrorism Campaign Continues

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Saturday, June 08, 2002

ROUNDUP: Hostage Crisis Over, Anti-Terrorism Campaign Continues

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Although the year-long hostage crisis in the southern Philippines is over after one American and a Filipino hostages were killed and the other American hostage was rescued, the Philippine government Friday vowed to continue its anti-terrorism campaign.

American missionary Martin Burnham and Filipino nurse Ediborah Yap were killed during an encounter between the government troops and the kidnappers at about 2:30 p.m. Friday (06:30 GMT) in the southern Philippine province of Zamboanga del Norte.

Martin was executed by the kidnappers when they realized it was a military rescue operation, and seriously wounded Yap expired on the way to hospital, a military source said.

Martin's wife Gracia, who had also suffered in the hands of the kidnappers for a year, was injured in the right leg and is now under care of the military.

Martin and Gracia were kidnapped together with another American Guillermo Sobero and 13 Filipino tourists in a western Philippine resort on May 27, 2001. Sobero was beheaded later last year by the bandits and the others were rescued in military operation or released after ransom were reportedly paid.

Ediborah Yap was one of the nurses the Abu Sayyaf kidnapped on June 2, 2001, when the bandits run into a hospital in the southern island of Basilan with their hostages while fleeing government troops' pursuit.

Other nurses and doctors kidnapped from the hospital have been released or rescued.

Fierce fire fighting between the Abu Sayyaf bandits and the government troops is still going on Friday evening. At least seven soldiers have been wounded and four Abu Sayyaf bandits have been killed, the ABS-CBN news channel quoted a military official as saying.

More troops have been sent to Zamboanga del Norte to reinforce the soldiers cordoning the Abu Sayyaf bandits and prevent its remnants from escaping.

Acting Armed Forces spokesperson Lieutenant General Narciso Abaya told reporters that the military planned for the rescue operation Friday afternoon.

Prior to the operation, the military received reports that the kidnappers and their hostages had transferred to Zamboanga del Norte.

"Now that a victim has been recovered, we will continue with the second mission of destroying the Abu Sayyaf," Abaya said.

On the day the crisis was over, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo made a statement saying she was deeply saddened over the death of Martin and Yap who were slain after more than a year in captivity.

Arroyo said she commiserated with the Burnham and Yap families.

"This has been a long and painful trail for them, for our government and for our country," she said, adding that "our soldiers tried their best to hold their fire for their safety."

Meanwhile, Arroyo vowed to continue fighting against terrorism and finish the Abu Sayyaf.

"The terrorists shall not be allowed to get away with this. We shall not stop until the Abu Sayyaf is finished. I ask our people to be vigilant always. The battle shall go on where ever it takes us," Arroyo said in her statement.

Over 1,000 U.S. troops are in Basilan and Zamboanga to train Filipino soldiers fighting against the Abu Sayyaf. Their joint military exercises will end by July.

However there are reports saying the U.S. government is considering extending the joint exercises.

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