3 soldiers hurt in rescue of 5 Abu Sayyaf hostages

ZAMBOANGA CITY — Three soldiers were wounded during the rescue of five villagers from the hands of an Abu Sayyaf group in a remote barangay in Isabela City, Basilan, the military said yesterday.

Meanwhile, authorities believe that the Abu Sayyaf was not involved in Thursday’s abduction of former Land Bank of the Philippines employee Romaon Eloferio (not Eloterio as the military earlier reported), saying that "personal grudge" could be the motive.

Lt. Gen. Roy Kyamko, chief of the Armed Forces’ Southern Command, said the Army’s 103rd Infantry Brigade launched the rescue Friday after they got information that the extremist group had seized five residents of Upper Kapayawan, a mountain village at the foot of the Sampinit complex.

Kyamko said the hostages — identified as Ali Akiran, Kulong Lasal, Ampolo Lasal, Rulana Lasal and a certain Jamil — escaped while the guerrillas shot it out with the 103rd IB men for about 30 minutes.

The identities of the three wounded soldiers were not immediately available. They were airlifted to the Southcom hospital here for treatment.

Sources said the hostages are relatives of Omar Lasal, one of two Abu Sayyaf members who escaped, along with Indonesian terrorist Fathur Rohman al-Ghozi, from their cells at Camp Crame last July.

Omar Lasal was recaptured in Dimataling, Zamboanga del Sur last month, and helped the military track down Al-Ghozi who was subsequently killed in a shootout with his pursuers.

In Sulu, personal grudge emerged as a likely motive in the kidnapping of Eloferio, 43, after his family positively identified his captors’ getaway vehicle — a red Tamaraw — as allegedly belonging to his business partner.

Police intelligence sources said Eloferio’s wife had noticed the red Tamaraw, with two men aboard, casing her husband.

Eloferio worked as a Landbank loan assessor. Early this year, he and some partners put up a business selling fruits and dried fish in Cebu.

The sources said the conflict between Eloferio and his business partners, reportedly over unremitted collections, has been brought to the attention of Patikul town officials. The case remains unresolved.

Eloferio was snatched by three men from his residence at Kasulutan Village in Barangay Busbus, Jolo town.

The sources, however, did not discount the possibility that the Abu Sayyaf could have been tapped to abduct Eloferio. — With Jaime Laude