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Two Filipino hostages of a Daesh-linked group have been rescued by government forces in the mainly Muslim province of Sulu in the south, according to the military Thursday.
In a text message, the military's Joint Task Force Sulu said Dolcesimo Almires and Esteban Janamjam were rescued by troops in Barangay Tagbak, Indanan town at around 9 a.m. (0100GMT) on Thursday.
A military official of Air Intelligence Service Group and Joint Intelligence Task Force Sulu, who declined to be named as he is not authorized to talk to the media, said the two Abu Sayyaf captives were rescued while they were being transported by their captors to the town of Parang.
"They were being escorted by two ASG gunmen when they were intercepted and rescued by government forces. The two escorts left their hostages after sensing the presence of the government forces," he said.
The rescued kidnap victims were rushed to Camp Teodulfo Bautista in Jolo town for medical checkup and debriefing before being turned over to their families.
On Oct. 25, the two were snatched in the seawaters of Pangutaran, an island town of Sulu. They were kept captive by the group of Abu Sayyaf sub-leader Jaber Susukan in Barangay Lumapid, Talipao town.
Abu Sayyaf is believed to still be holding a Dutch, a German, four Indonesians, five Malaysians, six Vietnamese, and six locals captive in the jungles of Sulu.
President Rodrigo Duterte had earlier pressed the military for "decisive" action against a Daesh-linked group and other terrorist groups in the troubled southern Philippines.
He sent out the top brass of the military and defense to Sulu on Tuesday to carry out his orders aimed at running after relentlessly and eliminating the Daesh-linked group.
At the change of command on Tuesday, Maj. Gen. Carlito Galvez, the new chief of the Western Mindanao Command, said the president had given him six months to one year to accomplish the mission in defeating the terrorist group and rescue the remaining hostages. -
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