RP hostage film says Westerners are targets of rebels

RP hostage film says Westerners are targets of rebels

Agencies, Manila

A U.S. missionary held by Moro rebels in the Philippines said in a video obtained on Thursday his captors were targeting not only Americans but also Europeans and other Westerners because of U.S. policies in the Middle East.

The video, obtained by Reuters, showed missionary couple Martin and Gracia Burnham to be in relatively good health and did not have the haggard look they wore in a previous video shown on local and U.S. television in November.

It was not possible to determine when the video was shot.

The Burnhams were abducted by the Abu Sayyaf group allegedly linked to al-Qaeda network, from an island resort in central Philippines in May last year and taken to the guerrilla stronghold on southern Basilan.

The informants, who supplied the video but declined to reveal their identities, claimed the couple was filmed in mid January.

There was no independent proof as to when and where it was actually taken. Some people who saw the video said they had the impression it may have been taken earlier than November, judging from their physical appearances.

Three hooded gunmen stood behind the Burnhams as Martin read a statement believed to be written by his captors, who claim to fight for an independent state in the south but pursue kidnap for ransom as their main activity.

"I, Martin Burnham and my wife Gracia, both U.S. citizens were taken captive on May 27, 2001 at the Dos Palmas resort in Palawan by the al-Qaeda's 'Al Harakatul Islamiah' or known as the Abu Sayyaf group," he said in the statement he read.

Gracia, sitting next to him, at one point rolled her eyes as her husband read the statement. She also appeared to be wearing the same dark blue T-shirt shown in the November video but also looked less haggard.

The statement Martin read said their captors "are targeting U.S., European and citizens of other Western nations" for several reasons, including U.S. support for Israel and continued sanctions against Iraq and Libya.

Martin did not make any other statements. Gracia never spoke on the video.

The Abu Sayyaf have been holding the Burnhams in Basilan jungles for more than nine months.

U.S. soldiers are training Filipino counterparts in counter- terrorism tactics in a six-month exercise aimed out wiping out the Abu Sayyaf, which has been linked to the al-Qaeda terror network believed responsible for the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States.

The 660-strong U.S. contingent includes 160 special forces soldiers deployed to Basilan to observe Filipino soldiers on the front-lines. They are armed for self-defense only.

Separately, a military intelligence report obtained by AFP on Monday said that a Moro rebel leader, Hashim Salamat, has returned to the Philippines from exile with orders to step up attacks against government targets.

Salamat slipped into the southern Philippines from Saudi Arabia last week and ordered his Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) to launch attacks despite a cease-fire, according to the report.

President Gloria Arroyo has since shelved peace talks with the MILF. The chief government negotiator, Eduardo Ermita, said the two sides must first resolve issues relating to truce violations before Manila goes back to the negotiating table.

The military also accused the MILF of sheltering other Moro armed groups engaged in kidnapping. Salamat fled Mindanao island two years ago at the height of a military offensive that captured most of the rebels' main camps there. The intelligence reports did not say how he had returned home.