<p class="title">A Dutch birdwatcher held by Islamic State-linked militants was killed on Friday during a firefight between his kidnappers and soldiers in the southern Philippines, according to the military, which said he was shot by his captors as he tried to escape.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Ewold Horn had been held since 2012 by the Abu Sayyaf kidnap-for-ransom group and was fatally wounded as soldiers fought a 90-minute gun battle with the jihadists on their stronghold, Jolo island.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The Dutch foreign ministry confirmed Horn died in an "exchange of fire", adding that it was "investigating the exact circumstances" of his death.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Philippine Brigadier General Divino Rey Pabayo said in a statement that "Horn was shot by one of his guards when he tried to escape from the Abu Sayyaf during this morning's gunfight."</p>.<p class="bodytext">The military's account could not be independently confirmed.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The southern Philippines is home to numerous armed groups, several of which are linked to the decades-old insurgency aiming to create a Muslim homeland in the Christian majority nation's deep south.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Horn was on an expedition to photograph rare birds on the remote Tawi-Tawi island group in the southern Philippines when he was abducted by unknown gunmen and turned over to the Abu Sayyaf.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Horn was seized along with Lorenzo Vinciguerra, a Swiss national who managed to escape in 2014 during a gunbattle between soldiers and his captors.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Abu Sayyaf has been blamed for some of the worst terror attacks in Philippine history, including repeated kidnappings of foreigners who are usually ransomed off for huge amounts.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Philippine officials assert the group was behind the deadly January bombing of a Cathedral on Jolo island during Sunday mass that was the worst attack to hit the nation in years.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The bombing was claimed by the Islamic State, which has worked to maintain a presence in the Philippines as its caliphate crumbled in the Middle East.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Abu Sayyaf was active in the Philippines years before linking up with Islamic State, and has supported its violent activities with kidnapping.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The group has held hostages over the course of years as it negotiated ransoms, but has shown a willingness to kill its captives.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Abu Sayyaf beheaded German hostage Jurgen Kantner, 70, in 2017 after its demands for a roughly $600,000 ransom were not met.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Two Canadian hostages kidnapped from yachts moored at a marina on a tourist island in the southern Philippines were also beheaded in 2016 after demands for ransoms of similar amounts went unfulfilled.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The military said Friday that the group was believed to hold at least two Filipinos and a Vietnamese national, but it could not be sure they were still alive.</p>.<p class="bodytext">It added that a woman named Mingayan Sahiron, which the army identified as the second wife of a top Abu Sayyaf leader, was also killed in Friday's gunbattle.</p>
<p class="title">A Dutch birdwatcher held by Islamic State-linked militants was killed on Friday during a firefight between his kidnappers and soldiers in the southern Philippines, according to the military, which said he was shot by his captors as he tried to escape.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Ewold Horn had been held since 2012 by the Abu Sayyaf kidnap-for-ransom group and was fatally wounded as soldiers fought a 90-minute gun battle with the jihadists on their stronghold, Jolo island.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The Dutch foreign ministry confirmed Horn died in an "exchange of fire", adding that it was "investigating the exact circumstances" of his death.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Philippine Brigadier General Divino Rey Pabayo said in a statement that "Horn was shot by one of his guards when he tried to escape from the Abu Sayyaf during this morning's gunfight."</p>.<p class="bodytext">The military's account could not be independently confirmed.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The southern Philippines is home to numerous armed groups, several of which are linked to the decades-old insurgency aiming to create a Muslim homeland in the Christian majority nation's deep south.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Horn was on an expedition to photograph rare birds on the remote Tawi-Tawi island group in the southern Philippines when he was abducted by unknown gunmen and turned over to the Abu Sayyaf.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Horn was seized along with Lorenzo Vinciguerra, a Swiss national who managed to escape in 2014 during a gunbattle between soldiers and his captors.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Abu Sayyaf has been blamed for some of the worst terror attacks in Philippine history, including repeated kidnappings of foreigners who are usually ransomed off for huge amounts.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Philippine officials assert the group was behind the deadly January bombing of a Cathedral on Jolo island during Sunday mass that was the worst attack to hit the nation in years.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The bombing was claimed by the Islamic State, which has worked to maintain a presence in the Philippines as its caliphate crumbled in the Middle East.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Abu Sayyaf was active in the Philippines years before linking up with Islamic State, and has supported its violent activities with kidnapping.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The group has held hostages over the course of years as it negotiated ransoms, but has shown a willingness to kill its captives.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Abu Sayyaf beheaded German hostage Jurgen Kantner, 70, in 2017 after its demands for a roughly $600,000 ransom were not met.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Two Canadian hostages kidnapped from yachts moored at a marina on a tourist island in the southern Philippines were also beheaded in 2016 after demands for ransoms of similar amounts went unfulfilled.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The military said Friday that the group was believed to hold at least two Filipinos and a Vietnamese national, but it could not be sure they were still alive.</p>.<p class="bodytext">It added that a woman named Mingayan Sahiron, which the army identified as the second wife of a top Abu Sayyaf leader, was also killed in Friday's gunbattle.</p>