Across the World: The Philippines

9 of 57 hostages freed

Armed Filipino bandits demanding murder charges against them be dropped freed nine of 57 people they abducted from a school on a southern island on Friday, a government official said.

The hostages were taken from an elementary school and nearby homes on lawless Mindanao on Thursday, less than three weeks after a massacre in a nearby province, throwing an unwelcome spotlight on the Southeast Asian nation ahead of presidential elections next year.