WASHINGTON, March 3 (IslamOnline) - Jeffrey Schilling, the 25-year-old American from Oakland, California, has attempted to commit suicide while being held in captivity by the Abu Sayyaf, said a spokesman for the group.
The spokesman said that Schilling tried to kill himself Friday night by trying to choke himself with an iron chain.
A spokesman for the organization, Abu Sabaya, told a local radio station that, "He [Schilling] complained that he is tired of walking and the sufferings in captivity."
Abu Sabaya said, "My [guards] told me he tried to commit suicide using the chain we used to strap him. They told me he is in a 50-50 condition."
The Abu Sayyaf is demanding the release of three Muslim prisoners being held in U.S. prisons for their role in the 1993 bombing of New York's World Trade Center in exchange for Schilling's freedom.
The personality of Schilling himself is controversial, with some reports claiming he is an arms dealer working in tandem with the Abu Sayyaf.
Schilling and Filipino Roland Ullah are the last two of more than 40 people kidnapped by the Abu Sayyaf since last April. About 20 of them, including Western hostages, were released after a payment of a hefty sum. Others escaped or were rescued.
The Filipino Army said the Abu Sayyaf is attempting to concoct a suicide story in order to slow down any army offensive against them.
Military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Danil Servando said, "The Abu Sayyaf has resorted to using the hostages to cushion the military's pressure."
