According to the officials the pirates again show its mercilessness by attacking another fishing trawler off Basilan island and killed three of the crews. The officials have confirmed that two other crew members were taken hostages to demand ransom later on. Al Rasheed Sakkalahul, Basilan’s deputy governor, informed that they condemn this attack and the authorities are now searching for those taken by pirates.
As per the version of Sakkalahul the attack took place on Thursday March 5. By quoting police reports Sakkalahul said that the pirates opened fire at the fishing boat then boarded the vessel and killed three crewmen. He added that they don’t know whether the two hostages are still alive or not. He also told that the authorities recovered the trawler, but it was apparently emptied and stripped off its important parts.
He ordered maritime police and the marines to intensify patrols at sea following the pirate attack. It is told that still no group has claimed the responsibility for the hijacking, but the attacks on trawlers and fishermen are not uncommon around Basilan because rebel groups such as the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the Abu Sayyaf are actively operating in the province, just a few nautical miles south of Zamboanga City.
