Rajah Agbimuddin Kiram passes away

Rajah Agbimuddin Kiram (inset). FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — Rajah Agbimuddin Kiram, who led a group of Filipinos to stake a claim to Sabah in 2013, has died.

A report from The Star Online said that Kiram, 74, died of cardiac arrest in his home in Simunul town Tawi-Tawi province on Tuesday.

He was the younger brother of the late Sultan Jamalul Kiram III, who died in October 2013.

It was Agbimuddin who led a group of followers into Lahad Datu in 2013, which led to an engagement with Malaysian security forces in a standoff and ended up in clashes.

The Star Online said at least 73 of Agbimuddin’s followers were killed (59 bodies have recovered) from the eight-week “armed showdown.”