The Hill
by Sharyl Attkisson, Opinion Contributor
9/23/2017
Excerpt:
“No,” says General Lito Sobejana in his native language Tagalog. “You cannot pay the ransom.”
I listen to him as he speaks patiently on the phone with the desperate wife of a man kidnaped by Islamic extremists. He translates the conversation when he hangs up the phone.
“She wants to try to raise ransom money,” he tells me. “They told her they would cut off his head today if she didn’t pay. But we have a strict ‘no ransom’ policy.”
The day before my meeting with the general, his men attempted a rescue and there was a fatal firefight. Six of the terrorists were killed. One of the general’s men was shot but survived.
We’re in the Mindanao region of the southern Philippines, which is home to more than 21 million people and is considered the nation’s “food basket.” It’s been under martial law since spring. We travel with heavily armed guards day and night.
These days, the locals can’t freely move about to fish and farm without fear of being snatched off the street by Muslim terrorist thugs who raise money from the kidnappings. More than a dozen victims are currently being held. Four were captured right before my visit.
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