John Ridsdel: Hostage from Canada killed in Philippines.



http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-36132382/

John Ridsdel a Canadian man killed in the Philippines

John Ridsdel, 68, was a former mining executive

A Canadian man held captive by Islamist militants for months in the Philippines has been killed.

John Ridsdel, 68, was taken from a tourist resort along with three others by the Abu Sayyaf group in September last year.

The group had threatened to kill a male hostage on April 25 if a ransom was not paid.

Confirming the death, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called it "an act of cold-blooded murder".

Mr Ridsdel was kidnapped from a marina near the city of Davao along with another Canadian, Robert Hall, Norwegian Kjartan Sekkingstad and a Philippine woman, Mr Hall's girlfriend Marites Flor.

They were taken 500km (300 miles) to the island of Jolo. Abu Sayyaf released a video of the group in November, in which they demanded $80m (£55m) for their release.

Mr Ridsdel later warned that he was due to be killed if no ransom was paid.

Several hours after the deadline, a severed head was found in a street on Jolo. The Philippine authorities said it belonged to a foreign man but it has not yet been formally identified.

"It's hard," a friend of Mr Ridsdel, Bob Rae, told CBC News. "It's just very hard. I've been involved behind the scenes for the last six months trying to find a solution and it's been very painful."

A former mining executive, Mr Ridsdel is described by Canadian media as semi-retired.

He also worked as a journalist.

Offering his condolences, Mr Trudeau gave few details, saying he would not compromise the safety of the other captives.

Abu Sayyaf was set up in the 1990s with funding from al-Qaeda, and is fighting for an independent Islamic province in the Philippines.

One of its commanders recently pledged allegiance to so-called Islamic State. The group is also holding several other foreigners.

Eighteen Philippine soldiers were killed in clashes with the militants on Basilan island near Jolo island earlier this month.
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Justin Trudeau outrage at 'cold-blooded murder' of hostage

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-36136608/

Canadian National Anthem lyrics Oh Canada
http://youtu.be/q7Zn6ERmZXM/
01:25

Religion Of Peace strikes again!
When will People start to understand?

i don't see any of the canucks that tell us how wonderful it is to have the "refugees" in kanucistan commenting in here yet...

This is disgusting!

Heartless xxxxxx

This sort of thing really gets me angry.

the religion of "peace and love" at it's finest...

Killing people for their own gain.
They hide cause they know they will get caught.
Wearing a face cover.
Innocent people who try and help others.
People need to seriously think which places they should go before going.

This world is getting worse

to many people... it just get worse and worse, especially with the liberals trying to control the world...

This photo from undated militant video, shows Canadians John Ridsdel, right, and Robert Hall. Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau confirmed Monday that Ridsdel was killed. He who was taken hostage by Abu Sayyaf militants in September 2015.

(Militant Video via AP Video)
Manila, Philippines



After Canadian beheaded, Philippines military pressured to save 20 hostages
The Christian Science Monitor

Manila, Philippines

The Philippine military came under increased pressure Tuesday to rescue more than 20 foreign hostages after their Muslim extremist captors beheaded a Canadian man, but troops face a dilemma in how to succeed without endangering the remaining captives.

Abu Sayyaf gunmen beheaded John Ridsdel on Monday in the southern province of Sulu, sparking condemnations and prompting Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to pledge to help the Philippines pursue the extremists behind the "heinous act."

"Canada condemns without reservation the brutality of the hostage takers and this unnecessary death," Trudeau told reporters. "This was an act of cold-blooded murder and responsibility rests squarely with the terrorist group who took him hostage."

Ridsdel's head was dumped by motorcycle-riding militants Monday night in Jolo town in impoverished Sulu, a densely forested province about 950 kilometers (590 miles) south of Manila, where the Abu Sayyaf and allied gunmen are believed to be holding 22 foreign hostages from six Western and Asian countries.

It's a politically sensitive time for troops to carry out major offensives, at the height of campaigning in a closely fought race among four contenders in the May 9 presidential election. President Benigno Aquino III and opposition politicians have had differences over the handling of the Muslim insurgency and the social ills that foster it.

"The pressure on the armed forces is really immense," said Julkipli Wadi, who has conducted extensive studies on the Muslim secessionist conflict in the south.

The underfunded military has to contend with escalating territorial disputes in the South China Sea while dealing with Muslim and Marxist rebellions that have endured through several presidencies, fueled by the poverty, neglect and desperation that have not been tamed by political leaders, Wadi said.

A large-scale offensive could displace many villagers and draw attention to the longstanding security and social issues in the vote-rich south, homeland of minority Muslims in the largely Roman Catholic nation.

That could play to the advantage of Rodrigo Duterte, the tough-talking city mayor from the south who has emerged as the front-runner in the presidential race by a lofty promise to end crime in six months and restore law and order. Aquino has endorsed another candidate, Mar Roxas, whose platform focuses on continuing the president's anti-corruption drive and economic reforms. All the presidential candidates condemned the beheading.

The Philippine military and police said "there will be no letup" in the effort to combat the militants and find the hostages, even though they have had little success in safely securing their freedom. Many hostages were believed to have been released due to huge ransom payments.

"The full force of the law will be used to bring these criminals to justice," they said in a joint statement.

About 2,000 military personnel, backed by Huey and MG520 rocket-firing helicopters and artillery, are involved in the manhunt for the militants, who are believed to be massing in Sulu's mountainous Patikul town, military officials said.

While under pressure to produce results, government troops have been ordered to carry out assaults without endangering the remaining hostages, including in the use of airstrikes and artillery fire, a combat officer told The Associated Press by cellphone from Sulu. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters.

Amid the offensive, Brig. Gen. Alan Arrojado resigned Tuesday in Sulu as commander of an army brigade "due to conflict of approach in addressing the Abu Sayyaf threats" in the province. Arrojado did not elaborate.

In past militant videos posted online, Ridsdel and fellow Canadian Robert Hall, Norwegian Kjartan Sekkingstad and Filipino Marites Flor were shown sitting in a clearing with heavily armed militants standing behind them. In some of the videos, a militant aimed a long knife at Ridsdel's neck as he pleaded for his life. Two black flags with Islamic State group-like markings hung in the backdrop of lush foliage.

The four were seized from a marina on southern Samal Island and taken by boat to Sulu, where Abu Sayyaf gunmen continue to hold several captives, including a Dutch bird watcher who was kidnapped more than three years ago, and Indonesian and Malaysian crewmen who were snatched recently from three tugboats.

Ridsdel was killed after the militants failed to receive a huge ransom demand by a Monday deadline. A police official said the killing of five and wounding of about 16 Abu Sayyaf gunmen in a military assault three days before the beheading may have angered the extremists and helped lead them to decide to kill him in revenge.

In Canada, Ridsdel was remembered as a brilliant, compassionate man with a talent for friendship.

"He could bridge many communities, many people, many situations and circumstances and environments in a very gentle way," said Gerald Thurston, a lifelong friend of the former mining executive and journalist who grew up with him in Yorkton, Saskatchewan.

Thurston said Ridsdel is survived by two adult daughters from a former marriage.

The Abu Sayyaf began a series of large-scale abductions after it emerged in the early 1990s as an offshoot of a separatist rebellion by minority Muslims in the southern Philippines.

It has been weakened by more than a decade of government offensives, but has endured largely as a result of large ransom and extortion earnings. The United States and the Philippines have both listed the group as a terrorist organization.

___

Associated Press writer Charmaine Noronha in Toronto contributed to this report.


http://m.csmonitor.com/World/Asia-Pacific/2016/0426/After-Canadian-beheaded-Philippines-military-pressured-to-save-20-hostages/

This happened in the P-H-I-L-I-P-P-I-N-E-S

Not Canada, get your geography right will ya?

lol... it's coming

don't worry,they are on the way,Invitation has already been issued!

On their way?

They're in my backyard!

Syrians are outstanding citizens

your such a good socialist... keep a gun handy, just in case... oh, i forgot, canucks don't need guns...

I have a good friend that lives on the island of Mindanao, the southern most island in the Philippines. It is heavily populated with Muslims that follow Abu Sayyaf. She lives in a small village of Kolambugan which is mostly christian.

A few times a year their village is raided by the Muslims who rape young women and pillage the village. It's sad they have to deal with this on top of the typhoons and mudslides that are common there.

Wish the world would just grow up!

Seems Canadians should be mourning the loss of
one of their own.

I think something needs to be done about people who do this.

They hide so people don't know where they are.

I know there are some that are doing something.

There must be another way we can deal with these creeps.

well, the libs aren't doing it right... sometime we have to fight fire with fire...

I agree with you

We've been fighting fire for 15 years YOUR WAY, we'll be fighting another 100 years if we stick to YOUR WAY.

Conservatives never learn from their mistakes, they just keep making the same ones over & over

We as Canadians are outraged and we will act, in a controlled manner, we will bring justice to those who murder innocent people. Never pizz off a Canadian. we don't need to wipe out 10-20 villages to prove a point eh?

What are the United Nations doing about this?

This is everyones problem.
It's getting worse
Going into popular citys and destroying lives as well.