Gunmen hold 20 villagers hostage

ILIGAN CITY — At least 30 gunmen entered a mountain village in the city’s outskirts before dawn yesterday and held 20 residents hostage for more than 10 hours in an apparent political feud between two clans, police said.

The gunmen barged into the village of Dulag and took three barangay tanods and 17 residents hostage in their houses, said Senior Superintendent Rogelio Nuneza, city police chief.

The gunmen abandoned their hostages unharmed as a police and Army contingent moved in, Army Col. Ernesto Boac said.

"Soldiers are pursuing them in the hinterlands. All the hostages are safe," Boac said.

Negotiators had tried to convince the hostage-takers, led by brothers Bocari and Tugoy Alindo, to safely release their captives. Nuneza said police and soldiers had been ready to rescue the captives if the negotiations failed.

Boac said the gunmen fled as troops neared Dulag, about 20 kilometers south of this city.

Iligan Mayor Franklin Quijano said the Alindos were trying to avenge the killing of a relative, Palau Alindo, in a politically motivated attack last Sunday by a rival family.

Palau’s wife Rica, when interrogated by the police, accused couple Ramirez and Sonia Nato of masterminding her husband’s murder.

She said the conflict between the Alindo and Nato clans began when her in-laws entered politics years ago.

The Alindos, said to be Maranaos, also wanted to get back about P300,000 they paid to the Nato family to settle a dispute over a previous election-related killing in which Palau was implicated, Quijano said.

Quijano earlier said he was optimistic the conflict would end peacefully in the spirit of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting which is currently in effect.

Dulag is a predominantly Muslim area. A permanent Army detachment would be set up there to thwart violent political and personal feuds in the future, Quijano said.

The Philippines is known for its turbulent politics, especially in rural areas where there are large numbers of firearms in circulation and long-standing feuds between politically opposed families and groups. — Lino de la Cruz, Cristina Mendez, Roel Pareño