Kidnapper of Indian national killed

A gang member was killed by a police team rescuing an Indian hostage in the Phillipines.

A kidnap gang member was killed and two other suspects were arrested Tuesday in a daring rescue of an Indian hostage in the Philippines, police said.

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Karnail Singh Chala, 35, was seized near suburban Marikina city east of Manila on Monday and his captors had demanded a five million-peso (96,000-dollar) ransom for his freedom.

But police managed to gather "strong leads" that eventually took them to the gang's hideout outside Manila, triggering a gunfight that left one suspect dead, said Manila police chief Director Vidal Querol.

Chala was rescued unharmed while two other suspects were arrested, Querol said. President Gloria Arroyo has ordered a crackdown on kidnap gangs preying on foreign and local businessmen in Manila and in nearby suburbs, acknowledging that the scourge has scared foreign investors.

Authorities are also grappling with kidnap gangs in the southern Philippines composed mostly of former Muslim militants.