A group of tourists who were kidnapped from a Malaysian resort island Sunday are being held in southern Philippines, local officials said Wednesday.
"They are here," Governor Abdusakur Tan of the southern Philippine island province of Sulu was quoted by local reports as saying. He added that a Philippine rebel commander is suspected behind the abduction. "The hostages are probably being held by Galid Andang, the commander of the extremist Muslim group Abu Sayyaf in the province,"Tan said.
But another report said that by now only 17 of the 20 hostages have been detained while the location of the other three is not mentioned.
The tourists were reportedly taken hostage late Sunday on a remote resort island of Sipadan off the Sabah coast in eastern Malaysia.
