American dies in bungled attempt to rescue hostages held in Philippines
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Your support makes all the difference.An American missionary held hostage in the Philippines for more than a year was killed yesterday during a bungled rescue attempt by troops trained by the US military.
Martin Burnham, 42, and another hostage, Ediborah Yap, a Filipina nurse, died of gunshot wounds, inflicted either by Filipino troops or Abu Sayaff rebels. Mr Burnham's wife, Gracia, was shot in the leg but freed when the rescue mission turned into a gunfight in dense jungle.
Four rebels died and seven soldiers were injured when hundreds of commandos equipped with night vision equipment launched the ambush near the town of Siraway, on the main southern island of Mindanao. Mrs Burnham, 43, received surgery in a military hospital in the city of Zamboanga after a bullet passed through her thigh, and was said to be out of danger.
The Burnhams, from Kansas, were kidnapped in May last year by Abu Sayaff guerrillas, who later beheaded a Californian hostage, Guillermo Sobero. Ms Yap was seized a few days later.
The couple were kidnapped the day after arriving at a beach resort off the island of Palawan to celebrate their 18th wedding anniversary.
Mrs Burnham told doctors: "I was so happy when I got out of the jungle." She said of her husband: "That is God's liking. That is probably his destiny."
American helicopters helped to remove the wounded yesterday. The US military has been training Filipino troops because Abu Sayaff – which is fighting for a separate Muslim state in the south – has links with Osama bin Laden's al-Qa'ida terrorist network.
President Gloria Arroyoa offered condolences to the Burnham and Yap families. "This has been a long and painful trial for them, for our government, for our country," she said.
The operation was launched after military intelligence indicated that the guerrillas had slipped off Basilan, a nearby island where they were holding the Burnhams.
Abu Sayaff kidnapped 18 other people when they abducted the couple, and subsequently seized dozens of others. The Burnhams and Ms Yap were the last remaining captives. The Philippine military now plans to pour reinforcements into the area.
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