“Casualties are to be expected”.
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The Norwegian hostage is also a Canadian permanent resident, a government official – speaking on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to discuss the details publicly – said Tuesday.
OUTRAGE Canadians John Ridsdel (right) and Robert Hall are shown in this video grab sent earlier by the Abu Sayyaf to media outlets. Junpikar Sittin, said two unidentified men on a motorcycle had hurled a bag containing Ridsdel’s head at a group of young men about to play basketball.
“My conversations with President (Benigno) Aquino of the Philippines were concentrated on ensuring that we bring these terrorists to justice, while at the same time ensuring the continued safety of Canadians while not in any circumstances paying a ransom to terrorist organizations or terrorists”, said Trudeau.
According to Reuters, the Philippine army found a severed head on a remote island, some five hours after the Monday’s ransom deadline set by militants of the Abu Sayyaf terror group.
“To my family and this is so much bigger, to the Canadian prime minister, Canadian people and the world, please do what is needed to meet their demands within one month or they will kill me and they will execute us”, Ridsdel said.
Aquino said the Abu Sayyaf militants have posed as Islamic freedom fighters, but “have behaved as criminals focused on enriching themselves by taking hostages for ransom”.
The hostages were believed to have been taken to Jolo Island in Sulu, a jungled province where the militants are thought to be holding a number of captives, including 14 Indonesian and four Malaysian crewmen who were abducted at gunpoint from three tugboats starting last month. “It is a problem because of the sizable force surrounding Sahiron and the captives, but it is also an opportunity because smashing these forces is within our grasp”, Mr. Aquino said.
“Canada does not and will not pay ransom to terrorists, directly or indirectly”, Trudeau said, vowing instead to hunt down and prosecute hostage-takers.
The Islamic State-linked group has made tens of millions of dollars from ransom money since it was formed in the 1990s, security experts say, channelling it into guns, grenade launchers, high-powered boats and modern equipment. They are two Canadian men, one Norwegian man and a Filipino woman, who had appealed in a video for their families and governments to secure their release.
A Philippine news site reported that del Torchio was released after a ransom was paid. It is also true the Canadian government may have in the past facilitated the release of hostages.
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The United States deployed special forces advisers to provide training and intelligence to Filipino troops from 2002 to 2014, which led to the killing or arrest of many Abu Sayyaf leaders.
