ZAMBOANGA CITY – Security forces clashed with gunmen and rescued a trader they abducted in the province of Basilan in the troubled Muslim autonomous region in southern Philippines, officials said on Monday.
Officials said government militias rescued Ramon Sanson, who was seized by at least 5 armed men clad in police uniform in Isabela City.
The militias quickly pursued the gunmen after receiving reports of the abduction and caught up with the gang on Malamawi Island, sparking a firefight that forced them to abandon their victim.
“There were no reports of casualties on the side of the militias, but we have received information that there were casualties on the part of the abductors,” said Capt. Maria Rowena Muyuela, a spokeswoman for the Western Mindanao Command.
She said Sanson was taken from his house and that the quick reaction of the patrolling militias resulted in the safe recovery of the trader.
“We have sent troops to track down the gunmen, who are suspected to be members of the Abu Sayyaf,” Myuela said.
Authorities have largely blamed the Abu Sayyaf for the series of kidnappings and bombings in the region. (Mindanao Examiner)
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