JAKARTA, Indonesia — Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo on Wednesday, May 11 said that the four Indonesian sailors who had been held hostage in the southern Philippines have been released.
“The release happened because of coordination between the governments of Indonesia and the Philippines,” Widodo told reporters at the presidential palace in Central Jakarta, adding that the four sailors were in good health.
Ten other Indonesian hostages held by groups with suspected links to militant network Abu Sayyaf were released on May 1, following a month-long ordeal during which a kidnapped Canadian was beheaded after a ransom deadline passed.
Abu Sayyaf is still holding four Malaysian seamen and Japanese, Netherlands, Canadian, Norwegian and Philippine citizens. (Eagle News Service)
