Kidnapped priest spotted with captors
Troops and navy gunboats in the Philippines tried to encircle suspected Muslim militants to pressure them into releasing kidnapped priest Michael Sinnott, a military general said today.
No rescue was imminent out of concern for the safety of Fr Sinnott, 79, said regional military commander Major General Benjamin Dolorfino.
Mr Sinnott’s abduction in southern Pagadian city in Zamboanga del Sur province on Sunday was the latest hostage crisis to grip this predominantly Roman Catholic nation, which has grappled with decades-long Muslim separatist unrest in the south, the homeland of minority Muslims.
Military informants twice saw Fr Sinnott and his captors wandering in a coastal area yesterday. They were seen again today trekking in the mountainous hinterland near the coast, Maj Gen Dolorfino said.
At least four navy gunboats and army troops moved to box them in but there was no immediate plan for a military rescue, he said.
Wexford native Fr Sinnott, who turns 80 in December, had been based in the Philippines since 1976 and for the last four years was running a school for children with hearing difficulties.
He is a highly respected missionary and a well-liked figure in the community.
Provincial officials formed a hostage crisis committee to try to identify negotiators who could try to persuade the kidnappers to free Fr Sinnott without a ransom, Maj Gen Dolorfino said.
“We’re trying to contain them in one area to be in a position of strength,” he said.
He declined to identify the kidnappers’ location for security reasons but said it was in another province not far from Zamboanga del Sur. They were seen walking near a stronghold of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, the country’s largest Muslim rebel group, he said.
Zamboanga del Sur lies about 487 miles (780km) south-east of the capital, Manila.
Maj Gen Dolorfino said the kidnappers apparently took Fr Sinnott for ransom and that they may have links with the Moro rebel group.
Although no-one has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping, suspicion has fallen on the 11,000-strong Moro rebels or the smaller but more violent Abu Sayyaf extremist group, which in the past has abducted foreigners, including priests.
