1.   And for spite, the group was holding Americans hostages and sometimes beheaded its captives.

2.   It also has beheaded some captives.

3.   In an unusually gruesome display of lawlessness, four Western captives were beheaded earlier this month.

4.   In an unusually gruesome display of lawlessness, four Western captives were beheaded earlier this month, apparently after a botched government attempt to free them.

5.   In an unusually gruesome display of lawlessness, four Western captives were beheaded last week.

6.   The clash with rebels of the Abu Sayyaf, an al-Qaida-linked group infamous for beheading captives, is the third in the area since Friday.

7.   The rebels later released some hostages, and claimed two weeks ago to have beheaded two captives after the government rejected some of their demands.

8.   One male captive was beheaded and another, the security chief of an Ipil bank, was hacked to death, he added.