Philippine terror group Abu Sayyaf has beheaded German hostage Jurgen Kantner, who was abducted from his yacht in November, after a deadline for a ransom passed without payment.
A video surfaced showing the killing, and government envoy Jesus Dureza confirmed the death, according to BBC News.
Abu Sayyaf is a small but brutally violent jihadist group that has pledged itself to ISIS and has kidnapped both Filipinos and foreigners.
“Up to the last moment, many sectors, including the armed forces, exhausted all efforts to save his life,” Dureza said, the BBC reported. “We all tried our best but to no avail.”
Philippine military units implemented air strikes in the area during the weekend before the deadline.
Kantner and his partner Sabine Merz were kidnapped from their boat off the coast of Malaysia, and Merz’s body was found on the boat soon after the kidnapping. An approximately $600,000 ransom was set for Kantner’s release, and it expired on Sunday.
Kantner was killed Sunday afternoon, although his body has not yet been recovered, the BBC said.
Kantner and Merz had been abducted previously by Somali pirates in 2008. They were held for 52 days and released after a ransom was paid. Kantner returned to sailing about a year after his release.
“My boat is my life and I don’t want to lose it, “ he said then, the BBC reported. “I want to live and die sailing.” Merz returned to the boat with him.
The German foreign ministry said in a statement, “We are deeply shocked by the inhumane and gruesome act,” the BBC reported.
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