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| Southeast Asia |
| Muslim rebels free 2 captive Philippine marines |
| 2008-06-13 |
| Muslim rebels freed two Philippine marines they had lured to a meeting about a possible surrender and then seized as hostages to demand the release of a guerrilla commander's nephew, officials said Friday. Philippine navy spokesman Lt. Col. Edgard Arevalo said the corporals, Jessie Duatin and Bernie Alcabasa, were released pre-dawn Friday to marine officials on southern Basilan island without ransom or concession to their Moro Islamic Liberation Front captors. They were taken at gunpoint Tuesday by rebels led by Commander Malat Sulaiman to demand the release of his nephew, Salih Dungkal Alih, the navy said. Alih was arrested last week in Basilan's Lamitan township as a suspected member of the al-Qaida-linked Abu Sayyaf group, and has been implicated in the beheadings last year of 14 marines. Rebel spokesman Eid Kabalu confirmed Sulaiman was a commander of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, which has been holding peace negotiations with the government. In a telephone interview Kabalu said Sulaiman will be investigated and dealt with in accordance with the guidelines of a joint cease-fire committee. Arevalo said Sulaiman's sister - who is Alih's mother - persuaded him to free the marines. A navy statement Thursday said Alih may have been erroneously arrested because his name differs slightly from one on the arrest warrant in the al-Qaida-linked beheadings. Arevalo said his release will be up to the court. The navy said the marines had been responding to surrender feelers by Sulaiman and were going to meet an emissary. "But on their way to the appointed place, the marine personnel were halted at gunpoint, taken forcibly and detained," a navy statement said. The military will file a protest with the rebels through the cease-fire committee despite the men's release, Arevalo said. |
| Posted by:ryuge |