WORLD IN BRIEF : PHILIPPINES : American, 2 Others Killed in Ambush

An American geologist, his wife and father-in-law were shot dead in an ambush in the central Philippines, the military said. The American was identified as John R. Mitchell, 42, of Fairbanks, Alaska. Communist rebels who have vowed to kill Americans and attack U.S. interests in the Philippines were thought to be responsible. The three were riding in a private jeep that looked like a military vehicle when they were attacked near Balilihan, a town in Bohol province about 400 miles south of Manila.