JAKARTA. Jan 19 (NNN-ANTARA) – The Abu Sayyaf terrorist group, held hostage, five Indonesian citizens, in waters off Sabah in Malaysia, not far from the area where three other Indonesian sailors had been previously kidnapped.
The abduction took place on Thursday night, when eight Indonesian nationals were fishing there, but three of them were released with their boat, according to a police statement.
According to the three freed sailors, six abductors in black masks aboard a speed boat captured the fishing vessel and brought it into waters off the Philippines, before allowing the three persons to leave for Malaysian waters with their fishing boat.
On Jan 5, Indonesia and the Philippines jointly freed 27-year-old Muhammad Farhan, one of the three Indonesian nationals abducted by the Abu Sayyaf group since Sept, 2019. Previously, two of his fellow sailors had been set free.
The latest kidnapping raised the number of Indonesian citizens kidnapped by the group to 41 since 2016, and most of them were released, according to the Indonesian Foreign Ministry.– NNN-ANTARA
