Military prepares for NPA attacks

From the Manila Standard Today (Jan 19): Military prepares for NPA attacks

The military directed its troops to prepare for the resumption of offensives against the New People’s Army (NPA) once its unilateral ceasefire expires on January 20, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) spokesman Colonel Restituto Padilla said on Monday.

“The ceasefire will be ending tomorrow. The full range of military operations will be back,” he said.

The NPA has also set its own staggered unilateral Christmas truce, but both the AFP and the NPA have accused each other of violating their own ceasefire.

Padilla, however, denied that the military violated its own truce and challenged the NPA “to show proof.”

“All of our troops did not conduct any offensive against the NPA during the duration of our ceasefire. They stayed in their camps ready to defend themselves if attacked,”  he said.

Reports during the ceasefire period showed some NPA ambush incidents against security forces that killed and wounded a number of troops, which NPA consistently denied.

Meanwhile, the AFP has condemned the NPA for not releasing the three policemen they captured in Surigao del Norte in November 2014.

“We are saddened that instead of fulfilling their promise of releasing the cops, the NPA is now engaging in propaganda war by blaming the AFP of causing the suspension of the release,” AFP public affairs chef Lieutenant Colonel Harold Cabunoc said.

“There is no truth to the allegations that the military has launched offensive operations against the NPA bandits in violation to the government-declared suspension of offensive military operations (SOMO) that ends on January 19,” he added.

Cabunoc said that “in case the NPA bandits continue to renege on its promise to release the victims, the AFP will do its best to rescue the hostages after the lifting of the SOMO (Suspension of Military offensives).

http://manilastandardtoday.com/2015/01/20/military-prepares-for-npa-attacks/