Hostages make video plea

A video that purports to show four hostages, who appear to be those kidnapped by armed militants in the southern Philippines last month, has been posted online.

In the video the four hostages sit in a row on the ground, in front of a group of at least eight men armed with guns and machetes.

“We beseech the Canadian government to please, please help us and the Philippine government…by stopping all of the operations that have been going on like artillery fire which came near us”, Ridsdel said. He did not identify what group they belonged to or their location.

Foreign Affairs in Ottawa says they’re aware two Canadians were taken hostage and that Canadian officials are in contact with Filipino authorities.

The army commander on Jolo, General Alan Arrojado, said the military would not stop operations against the Al Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf because there was no proof the hostages were in that area.

There has been speculation the hostages were taken hundreds of miles west to Jolo island, a stronghold of the Abu Sayyaf, a small but violent Islamist group that has been spreading terror in the Philippine south since the 1990s, with its intermittent bombings, kidnappings and beheadings.

A screenshot of the video posted on Facebook shows Canadians Robert Hall and John Ridsdel; Norwegian Kjartan Sekkingstad, and Filipina Maritess Flor who were kidnapped September 21, 2015 from the upscale Holiday Oceanview marina on Samal Island off Davao del Norte province. “Please, please help us”.

“We cannot, as of the matter, discuss operational details, but we can assure you the safety of the hostages is always foremost in our minds”.

“I know there are people that can find a way to do this”. “Please stop all of these operations so that negotiations can start about, with the, about their demands”, he says to the camera.

In the video, one of the leaders of the Abu Sayyaf gunmen then delivered a message to the Canadian and Philippine governments with their demands.

“Once you meet our requirements, then we can talk about negotiations in demand”, he added.

One of the gunmen, reading a statement in English, said the kidnappers would not negotiate for the captives’ release unless the military operation was halted.

Bombings, kidnappings, assassinations and other acts of violence in the region have been attributed to Abu Sayyaf for decades in the group’s fight for independence from the Republic of the Philippines. Although no one taken hostage, two security guards at the Pearl Farm resort were killed.

The video was the first indication that they were still alive. Philippine authorities on Tuesday declined to comment on the video, saying they will have to validate the authenticity of the material. “(Our) posture remains, where our troops are, where our police are, they will remain to be where they are”, he said.