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Rebels escape with hostages
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Top leader killed, others escaped
PHILIPPINE troops scrambled on Sunday to track down Abu Sayyaf rebels who escaped from a military cordon with a number of hostages, including three Americans taken from a tourist resort.
Military spokesman Brigadier General Edilberto Adan said rebels holed up in the Jose Torres Memorial Hospital and Saint Peter's Cathedral in Lamitan escaped under the cover of darkness early on Sunday, using the hostages as "human shields".
Hundreds of heavily armed troops, backed by armoured personnel carriers and two helicopter gun-ships, had ringed the compound and mounted assaults since Saturday.
Rebel units positioned outside the hospital and the church mounted a fierce counter attack during the night, in a ploy to divert attention and allow the main bulk of their forces to escape with the hostages, Adan said.
"They are now being pursued by our troops. There is now a buildup of forces there and the operation continues."
Soldiers were careful in firing back because the kidnappers used the hostages, including some children, as shields, he said.
Fighting raged overnight with the rebels using mortars and rocket propelled grenades, forcing hundreds of residents and 20 journalists to flee in panic.
An army captain was the latest casualty on Saturday, raising the toll to 12 soldiers dead, Adan said.
There were no estimates of fatalities on the rebel side, but President Gloria Arroyo said Abu Sayyaf leader Khadaffy Janjalani was among those killed.
Philippine marines took control of the church at around 4 am (2000 GMT) but found no rebels or hostages. The compound was littered with debris and walls were pock-marked with bullet holes.
Five Filipino hostages taken from a beach resort in the western island of Palawan on May 27 and brought to Lamitan town on Basilan island escaped during the fighting, officials said.
Four other Filipinos escaped on Saturday, leaving only 11 of the original 20 hostages seized from the beach resort in the kidnappers' hands. Local officials said five nurses from the hospital were also taken.
"Those Americans are with them in the jungle now," said Lamitan Mayor Inocente Ramos, referring to Martin and Gracia Burnham, of Kansas, and Guillermo Sobero of California.
"They escaped and brought the rest of our companions, including the three Americans," said Janice Ting Go, a Filipino hostage who was among the 20 people abducted from the Palawan resort last week.
"They retreated when night fell while covering themselves with sporadic fire," she said. "We untied ourselves from the rest and managed to escape during the heavy volley of gunfire."
Another escaped hostage, Teresa Ganzon, voiced fears the other hostages would be harmed in the military attacks.
"If possible, please negotiate first because the hostages are alive and are in real danger," said Ganzon, who escaped along with Go, Letty Lao and couple Raul and Divine Recio. The Recios' eight year-old son RJ was among those who escaped on Saturday.(SD-Agencies)
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