Police ready to help rescue Indonesians

The National Police Headquarters is ready to send personnel of its anti-terror squad Densus 88 and Mobile Brigade (Brimob) to help rescue 10 Indonesian sailors being held hostage by the Abu Sayyaf group in the Philippines.
"We are ready to help, and are even prepared to send a team of Densus and Brimob personnel," Head of the National Police Headquarters Public Relations Division, Inspector General Anton Charliyan, said here on Tuesday.

The Indonesian police is coordinating with Interpol as part of the efforts to rescue the Indonesian sailors. "We are coordinating with Interpol," he said.

Two Indonesian-flagged vessels carrying seven tons of coal were hijacked in the Philippine waters on March 24.

"The priority now is to save the 10 Indonesians held hostage. The company (which operates the two ships) has informed the relatives of the 10 sailors being held hostage about the incident," spokesman for the Indonesian Foreign Ministry, Arrmanatha Nasir, said.

The ministry received information about the piracy incident on Monday. Since then, it has coordinated with relevant parties in Indonesia and the Philippines, including its foreign ministry.

The vessels were a tug and a barge. They were hijacked while on their way from Puting River in South Kalimantan to Batangas, South Philippines.

"We dont know exactly when the two vessels were hijacked. The owner of the vessels came to know the vessels were hijacked on March 26, 2014 when he received a phone call from someone claiming to be a member of Abu Sayyaf group," he said.
Source: ANTARA