Lebanon envoy denies offering
$25m to Abu SayyafQUEZON CITY,
(ABS-CBN) - Lebanon's vice consul to Manila, Joseph Assad belied newspaper reports Sunday
that close ally Libya has offered the Abu Sayyaf $25-million dollars for the release of
the Sulu hostages.
The Lebanese envoy also blasted the report as "fictitious" and
"incredible" warning that the "false rumors" only jeopardize the
safety of the hostages.
"The $25 million report is totally incredible...one would need two
armored vehicles to transfer (the money)...thats over 1 billion pesos from Manila to Jolo.
Let's be realistic. Lets not speculate and spread false rumors," Assad said.
The Lebanese official likewise insisted that they will stand by the
"no-ransom policy" of the Philippine government, while denying reports that
Lebanon's Embassy in Tokyo, Japan has any knowledge of the planned deal.
It was reported earlier that an emissary, representing the son of Libyan
leader Moammar Gadhafi's son Seif al-Islam, supposedly contacted the Lebanese ambassador
to Tokyo, Japan to express readiness to pay a ransom worth one million dollars to free
Lebanese-French hostage Marie Moarbes.
The emissary, Mohammed Ismail, also reportedly offered an additional $24
million for the release of the remaining hostages.
Six French, three Malaysians, two Germans, two Finns, two South Africans
and 15 Filipinos, including the group of Christian evangelist Wilde Almeda, are also being
held by the Abu Sayyaf.
But vice consul Assad too denied the said report.
"That is totally not true. I spoke with the (Tokyo) ambassador today
and the ambassador himself is surprised that...he doesn't even know Mr. Ismail."
"He has never spoken to him or met with him much less anybody in his embassy,"
he added.
Assad added that Marie's father Goerge Moarbes is furious about the article
"which he (Moabes) says is jeopardizing not only his daughter's safety but the rest
of the hostages."
"Moarbes is really in a totally depressed mode right now after three
months after all this time they are coming out with reports that are jeopardizing the
lives of all the hostages."
Meanwhile, the two Malaysian officials who will be helping government
negotiators in securing the release of the Muslim extremists' three remaining Malaysian
hostages cancelled their trip to Zamboanga City on Sunday.
(With a report from Queenie Casimiro and Robert Tan)
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