Man held hostage by Abu Sayyaf reportedly killed

Prime Minister Najib Razak said on Wednesday that a Malaysian man held for months by Islamic militants in the southern Philippines had been murdered, condemning what he called a "savage and barbaric" act.

Najib's comments came after the Philippine military said it was working to verify reports that Malaysian citizen Bernard Then had been beheaded by the Islamic militant group Abu Sayyaf.

"I, the government, and all Malaysians are shocked and sickened by the murder of our countryman Bernard Then, and we condemn it in its strongest terms," Najib said on his Facebook page.