The abductions took place on Monday night (local time) at the Oceanview Resort on Samal Island, which sits off the major southern island of Mindanao, according to the official Philippines News Agency.

Regional military spokesman Captain Alberto Caber told AAP that two Japanese resort guests unsuccessfully tried to intervene, before the gunmen escaped with their hostages aboard a motorised outrigger.

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Captain Caber said the gunmen appeared to have specifically targeted the victims when they entered the Holiday Oceanview Samal Resort before midnight on Monday(local time), about 975km southeast of Manila.

He said authorities had no immediate suspects.

Captain Caber said a naval blockade was set up around the island to stop the kidnappers from reaching Basilan Island farther to the southwest, where Abu Sayyaf militants have strongholds where they keep hostages while negotiating ransoms


The Abu Sayyaf, which had about 400 gunmen, was recently declared a terrorist group by a Philippine court and is on Washington’s lists of terror organisations.

Police identified the Norwegian as Kjartan Sekkingstad, the resort’s marina manager, and Canadians as John Ridsel and Robert Hall.

The Filipino woman was the wife of one of the Canadians.