April 25, 2000, PHNO, Newsflash!!! Abu Sayyaf Claim Malaysian Abductions,

April 25, 2000, PHNO, Newsflash!!! Abu Sayyaf Claim Malaysian Abductions,

Zamboanga City, April 25, 2000 - The extremist Muslim rebel group Abu Sayyaf has claimed responsibility for the abduction of 20 persons, mostly foreign tourists, from an exclusive resort in Sipadan Island, off the coast of Sabah in Malaysia.

``Our group is behind the abduction of the foreigners in Malaysia and there are still a lot of surprises for the government if they won't listen to us,'' Abu Sayyaf, spokesman for the Philippine rebel group Abu Ahmad, said over radio station DXRZ.

The Philippine government has refused the rebels' demands, including the release of three Arab terrorists held in jails in the United States for the World Trade Center bombing.

Philippine Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado said the military is still trying to confirm whether the Abu Sayyaf is actually responsible for the Malaysian abductions.

``We don't just jump and believe the Abu Sayyaf immediately. We will verify and confirm this,'' he said. "If they are involved in this, it would be to get international attention," he said in an earlier interview.

Col. Ernesto de Guzman, chief of staff of the Philippine military's Southern Command, said officials were trying to determine whether there was a connection with the hostage situation on the southern Philippine island of Basilan.

Philippine national police deputy director Gen. Reynaldo Wycoco told reporters that the kidnappers spoke Tausug, a language spoken in parts of the southern Philippines.

Meanwhile, Malaysian Defense Minister Najib Tun Razak said his government has established where gunmen are keeping 20 people, including foreign tourists, who were seized from a resort off Borneo.

"We now know their exact location," Najib was quoted by the official Bernama news agency.

He added that Malaysia had dispatched a patrol boat and a maritime surveillance aircraft to the location where the kidnappers were holding the hostages.

"The ministry has also placed all its units on alert," Najib said.

He added that the pirates were not Malaysians and that a crisis management team was mapping out strategies to handle the situation.