Abu Sayyaf, the militant Filipino group, has been linked to a third tug attack in quick succession. The Indonesian tug, Henry, which was towing the barge, Christi, was hit by armed men from a speedboat on Friday afternoon in the Celebes Sea off northeast Kalimantan.
The tug was fired at with one seafarer hit and four crew were kidnapped. The tug and the barge returned to Lahad Datu in Kalimantan.
This is the third tug attack in the same area in the past fortnight. The previous two attacks involved kidnappings and ransom demands.
