Sipadan kidnappings of 2000 | |
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Part of Islamic insurgency in the Philippines and Cross border attacks in Sabah | |
Location | Sipadan, Malaysia and Jolo, Philippines |
Coordinates | 4°06′53″N 118°37′44″E / 4.114683°N 118.628756°E |
Date | 23 April 2000 – 19 September 2000 (UTC+8) |
Target | Local and foreign tourists |
Attack type | Hostage situation |
Weapons | Automatic weapons, grenades and rocket-propelled grenades |
Deaths | None |
Injured | Several |
Perpetrators | Abu Sayyaf |
The 2000 Sipadan kidnappings was a hostage crisis in Sabah, Malaysia, and the southern Philippines that began with the seizing of twenty-one hostages from the dive resort island of Sipadan at approximately 6:15 p.m. (UTC +8) on 23 April 2000, by up to six Abu Sayyaf (ASG) bandits.[1] Taken hostage were 10 tourists from Europe and the Middle East and 11 Malaysian resort workers, 19 non-Filipino nationals in total. The hostages were taken to an Abu Sayyaf base in Jolo, Sulu.[2]
During the hostage taking, Abu Sayyaf issued various demands for the release of several prisoners, including 1993 World Trade Center bomber Ramzi Yousef, $2.4 million and a complete withdrawal of government troops from the area around Jolo where the hostages were being held.[3]
The Philippine Army launched a major offensive on 16 September 2000, rescuing all remaining hostages, except Filipino dive instructor Roland Ullah. Ullah was eventually freed in 2003.[2]