Security at Malaysia’s Eastern Sabah Safety Zone (Esszone) has been intensified following information on possible kidnapping plans by terror group Abu Sayyaf.
Three Indonesian fishermen abducted by members of an Islamist group have been freed 18 months after they were abducted in waters off the southern Philippines, the Philippine military said on September 16.
At least six people were killed in a bomb attack in the early hours of July 31 in Basilan, an island province in southern Philippines, according to international media.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has proposed a dialogue between his administration and the country's Islamist extremist Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) to end conflicts.
The Philippine Navy said on July 16 that it and the Royal Australian Navy has started 10-day joint exercises in the Sulu Sea to deal with threats of kidnapping and terrorism.
The Abu Sayyaf militant group is holding 10 hostages, including a Dutch national, three Indonesians and six Filipinos, said Brigadier General Cirilito Sobejana, commander of the military’s Joint Task Force, on March 27.
At least 44 pro-Islamic State (IS) militants have been killed in clashes between government troops and the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) in the southern Philippines, said an Filipino army spokesman on March 11.
Malaysian police said on Feb. 21 that they had arrested 11 Malaysians and Filipinos for suspected link to terrorist organisations, including the Abu Sayyaf militant group in the southern Philippines.
A Filipino couple have been beheaded by Abu Sayyaf terrorist group in a remote village on Basilan island in southern Philippines, a military official said on January 5.
Malaysia’s police announced on December 22 that they had arrested 20 suspects, including 13 foreigners, for link to recent terrorist activities.
About 500 members of Malaysian People’s Volunteer Corps (Rela) will be deployed to assist in monitoring security in Eastern Sabah Security Zone (Esszone) from January 2018.
The Vietnam Economic and Cultural Office in Taipei is actively coordinating with officials from China’s Taiwan to carry out search and rescue activities and update information on Vietnamese workers trapped in a fire in Taiwan on December 14.
Philippine authorities have exhumed a cadaver that was supposed to be the body of Pham Minh Tuan, captain of ship Royal 16 who was kidnapped in the Philippines on November 11, 2016.
The Maute terrorist group remains a threat to the region although Marawi city of Mindanao has been liberated, warned Armed Forces of the Philippine (AFP) on December 8.
Malaysian authorities arrested four foreigners for suspected links to the Islamic State (IS) in Sandakan, Sabah on December 4, Malaysia's The Star newspaper reported.
The Vietnamese Embassy in the Philippines has repatriated the body of a Vietnamese sailor who died of illness after being rescued from militant group Abu Sayyaf.
Military and police of the Philippines arrested Rahim Abdul, a suspected Abu Sayyaf bomb expert with a bounty of 1.3 million PHP (26,000 USD) on his head, said Philippine military on November 30.
Philippine police said on November 17 that they foiled a plot to bomb a Manila shopping mall as US President Donald Trump and other world leaders arrived in the city for the 31st ASEAN Summit.
