Philippine troops try to head off escaping kidnappers

The Muslim extremists were believed to be taking the hostages, abducted April 23 from a resort island in neighboring Malaysia, into the hills of Patikul town, the officials said. A group of escaping rebels clashed briefly last night with Army troops, but there were no casualties, Lt Hassam Laquian said.

A team of negotiators attempted to meet with the kidnappers late on Saturday, but were unable to reach them because of the rising tensions in the area. Representatives of the negotiators who visited the rebels on Thursday said the guerrillas were already outside the military cordon and had all 21 captives with them.

Contacts between the kidnappers and the negotiators were cut earlier this week after hundreds of troops encircled the area where the hostages had been held in a simple bamboo hut. A series of clashes erupted on Tuesday and Wednesday as the rebels attempted to escape. The rebels have threatened to behead two foreign hostages if the military does not remove its troops from the area.