Manila (dpa) – Two teachers and a midwife were kidnapped by suspected Muslim militants in the southern Philippines, the military and police said Tuesday. The two teachers, both male, were seized on Monday on their way to school in Iligan City, 810 kilometers south of Manila. They were believed to have been taken by armed men led by a Muslim rebel commander in the area, a police report said. On Jolo Island, gunmen abducted a 54-year-old midwife in Patikul town on Monday, according to Colonel Remegio Valdez, a marine brigade commander. Valdez said the suspects initially seized six health workers from an ambulance, but let the five others go. The motive for both abductions were not yet known, but kidnappings for ransom are rampant in the southern Philippines where Muslim rebels resort to the crime to raise funds. The al-Qaeda-linked Muslim Abu Sayyaf rebel group is notorious for kidnapping foreign hostages and holding them for ransom. The militants are currently believed to be holding captive an Australian national kidnapped in December and two European birdwatchers abducted in February. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/oVCcY Tags: Abu Sayyaf, Kidnapping, Midwife, Philippines, Teacher Section: East Asia, Latest News
