Abu Sayyaf pocketed at least 353 million pesos ($7.3 million) from ransom kidnappings in the first six months of the year and have turned to abductions of foreign tugboat crewmen as military offensives restricted the militants' mobility, a confidential Philippine government report said. President Rodrigo Duterte, who took office in June, has ordered troops to destroy Abu Sayyaf, known for its brutality and ties to some foreign militants, and he has ruled out the possibility of any peace talks with them. "Lucrative payoffs from KFR (kidnappings for ransom), the report said, "enabled the ASG to procure firearms as well as ammunitions." Of the estimated 353 million pesos in ransom received by the Abu Sayyaf for six kidnappings of 21 people from January to June, the bulk was paid in exchange for the releases of 14 Indonesian and 4 Malaysian crewmen who had been held at Abu Sayyaf jungle bases in Sulu province, the report said. Prior to Sekkingstad's release, Duterte suggested at a news conference that 50 million pesos ($1 million) had been paid to the militants.

Source: ABC News October 27, 2016 07:43 UTC