The military Monday said kidnapped Italian hostage, Eugenio Vagni, a worker of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), is still alive and government forces are doing everything to rescue him.

Lt. Col. Edgard Arevalo of the Philippine Navy said that based on information they are getting from their sources, the 63-year-old Vagni is alive but his Abu Sayyaf kidnappers are constantly moving him to evade rescue operations by the military and police.

Arevalo said proof that Vagni is alive is the fact that he still gets to contact his family. Aside from this, villagers told the military they saw Vagni on Thursday bathing in a coastal area in Jolo while being guarded by his abductors.

Arevalo assured that government forces are doing everything to rescue Vagni, but emphasized that the operation is being done with utmost care to prevent the victim and other innocent civilians from getting hurt in the process.

At the same time, the military also appealed to the community, especially those in the affected areas in Mindanao, for understanding, support and cooperation to end the kidnappings and atrocities in the region.

Arevalo said government forces are continuously conducting follow up operations to rescue the remaining ICRC hostage, adding that they have been receiving information about the location of the victim but stressed that all these are being validated and processed.

"We will not stop until we can rescue Vagni," Arevalo said, adding that the Red Cross worker was not with the group encountered by the military last Saturday.
Seven from the government forces, including six marines and a member of the police Special Action Force (SAF), were killed and 17 others were wounded in what the military described as a treacherous attack by the bandits. Six ASG men were also reported killed in the clash.

"We will finish this problem," Arevalo said, adding, "help us with your prayers and support."

"The sentiment of the security forces is for the immediate neutralization of the Abu Sayyaf (ASG), immediate resolution of the kidnapping problems and rescue of Vagni without losing regard to the safety of civilians who are adversely affected by the ongoing skirmishes in Sulu," Arevalo said.