The International Press Institute (IPI) on Friday expressed grave concern over reports that a three-man TV crew from the Dubai-based Al Arabiya news outlet were kidnapped by members of militant group Abu Sayyaf. The three journalists, along with their guide and driver, have been missing since Tuesday, June 12, on a Philippine island known for unrest and foreign kidnappings.

Reports said the journalists were being held for P50 million (around € 936,500) in ransom by a group close to Yasser Igasan, who is described by The Philippine Star as the “spiritual leader and overall leader” of Abu Sayyaf. Other foreigners are currently being held for ransom by the militant organization.

The news crew was reportedly led by Baker Atyani, a Jordanian national and veteran journalist who is now working out of Jakarta, Indonesia in his role as Al Arabiya’s Southeast Asia bureau chief. Also missing were Filipino journalists Ramelito Vela and Roland Letrico, a female guide and their driver, reports said.

Atyani landed on Jolo Island, where the militant group Abu Sayyaf is currently holding several foreigners hostage, on Monday, in order “to shine a light on the situation of Muslims in the Philippines,” Al Arabiya’s head of media, Nasser Al-Sarami, told AFP.

The TV crew has been missing since Tuesday. The journalists reportedly failed to show up for an Independence Day event they said they would cover, and authorities searched their rooms after the owner of their hotel told police they hadn’t come home from the night.

Atyani, a veteran reporter, has interviewed Osama Bin Laden, but Jolo Mayor Hussin Amin told AP: “Well, he doesn’t know what he got into this time. These gunmen are bandits and drug addicts. They can enter but it’s uncertain if they can exit.”

“We are gravely concerned for the well being of these journalists and their colleagues,” IPI Deputy Director Anthony Mills said. “We call for their immediate release and hope very much that Baker Atyani and his colleagues are returned safely and unharmed.”