Philippine govt condemns Abu Sayyaf beheading of German captive

President of the Philippines Rodrigo Duterte apologized on Tuesday for the beheading of German hostage Jurgen Gustav Kantner at the hands of militant separatist group Abu Sayyaf. The group beheaded Kantner and posted a video of his death online.

“We all tried our best”, said Dureza. “But to no avail”. It is unclear whether the remains belonged to Merz.

Philippine officials have said the militants were seeking a ransom of 30 million pesos ($605,000). In 2008, the pair were abducted by Somali pirates of the Gulf of Aden and held for almost two months.

Despite their horrific experience, Kantner and his wife were undeterred, even returning to Somalia to retrieve their boat, the Rockall, which had been damaged in the raid. On Sunday, military spokesman Restituto Padilla said troops were continuing operations to rescue foreign and local hostages, including Kantner, who was believed to be held in the jungles of southern Sulu province.

It is still unconfirmed whether Kantner’s beheading was because of the failure to meet the demand.

In Berlin, Chancellor Angela Merkel called for a united global front against terrorism. “Our task has not been easy but we are prepared to crush them when the opportunity comes”.

Last year, Abu Sayyaf beheaded two Canadians on Jolo but their two companions, a Filipino woman and a Norwegian, were freed.

The video, released in chat groups of Islamic State supporters on Monday, showed the 70-year-old captive slumped on a grassy lot and a man holding a knife to his neck. It has released twelve hostages since last June, including an eight-year-old boy who was turned over to the authorities on Monday. They have freed several others in return for ransom payments. “I don’t care about pirates and governments”.

“We are trying to put more effort into suppressing the growth of ISIS in the south”, Lorenzana said.

The boy paid respect to President Duterte with a salute.

But all that is a future prospect that will have to give way to the problem of the present – which is, for the Philippines, the continued operations of the Abu Sayyaf.

To counter, the Philippines has said it is looking to Chinese and American forces to help patrol waters in the area, which also includes a busy global shipping channel called the Sibutu Passage.

“We shall not let these terrorist groups grab the real Islamic narrative”.