The Philippine military has confirmed that the Abu Sayyaf group has killed one of six Vietnamese sailors abducted more than three weeks ago.
Joint Task Force Sulu of the Philippine Army has received reports that Abu Sayyaf gunmen killed the captive while escaping from pursuing troops in Tawi-Tawi, an island province in the Philippines, which is near where the abduction took place.
Gunmen believed to be linked to the Abu Sayyaf group, one of the smallest and most violent jihadist groups in the southern Philippines, took six crew from the Giang Hai bulk carrier 17 nautical miles off Pearl Bank on February 19 after killing one of the seafarers aboard the vessel.
The Philippine military reported that Abu Sayyaf is still holding 11 Vietnamese, a Dutch national, a Korean, seven Indonesians, five Malaysians, and eight Filipinos captive.
