The armed group stormed the diving resort on speedboats, taking tourists from Germany, France, Finland, South Africa, and Lebanon, along with Malaysian and Filipino staff to their jungle hideout in the Sulu archipelago. The hostages endured months of captivity before being released after a reported multimillion-dollar ransom payment facilitated by then-Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.
Among those convicted were Hilarion del Rosario Santos III and Redendo Cain Dellosa, who were previously placed on a U.N. Security Council sanctions list for their involvement in terrorist activities. The Philippine Justice Department called the verdict a testament to its "unwavering commitment to uphold the rule of law."
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