Philippine rebels say they have killed American hostage Timothy McVeigh wasn't the only one executed yesterday. Abu Sabaya, leader of the Abu Sayyaf separatist group holding at last 27 people hostage, said the rebels beheadedGuillermo Sobero of Corona, California. "We've chopped off his head because we … can see that the government wants to outsmart us with these negotiators. What are we, stupid?" Sabaya told a local radio network. "So we've cut off negotiations. We will call again when we've beheaded another to let them know."
Chief of Staff Diomedio Villanueva says Sabaya probably isn't bluffing. "The possibility of it having happened is quite very, very high," he said. The beheading means that the only two surviving American hostages are New Tribes missionaries Martin and Gracia Burnham—and Martin was reportedly injuredin recent clashes between his captors and the Philippine military.
Guillermo Sobero leaves behind four children, the oldest of whom is 13. "They think he's on vacation," relative Neuza Chiong tells Reuters. "I'm not sure when we'll tell them."