Clash with NPA rebels leaves 2 soldiers dead

From the Business Mirror (May 6): Clash with NPA rebels leaves 2 soldiers dead

TWO soldiers were killed while another one was wounded on Tuesday in a clash with members of the New People’s Army (NPA) in Misamis Oriental, reports reaching the military’s general headquarters said.

The soldiers were killed after they were hit while trying to retrieve a wounded companion in the middle of the firefight, a report from the Army’s Fourth Infantry “Diamond” Division said.

The report said troops from the 58th  Infantry Battalion (IB) clashed for 10 minutes with members of the Committee Front 4B of the NPA at Sitio Kapatagan, Barangay Umagos, Lagonglong, Misamis Oriental.

The soldiers launched the combat operations after they were informed about the presence of about 100 armed men in the area.

The armed men turned out to be communist guerrillas.

During the gun battle, a soldier was wounded, but as his companions tried to retrieve him in order to take him to the hospital, the rebels hit two other soldiers who were killed on the spot.

The military refused to identify the fatalities pending notification of their next of kin.

Meanwhile, members of the First IB clashed with at least 30 rebels in General Nakar, Quezon, also on Tuesday. The troops recovered several high-powered firearms.

First Lt. Xy-Zon Meneses, chief public affairs officer of the Second Infantry “Jungle Fighter” Division, said the firefight occurred at around 10 a.m. at Barangay Pagsangahan.

Following the clash, the soldiers recovered an AK-47 assault rifle with four ammunition magazines, an M-16 rifle, an M-1 Garand rifle, three homemade shotguns, a Motorola handheld radio and three backpacks.

Meneses said three rebels who belong to the NPA’s Special Regional Guerrilla Unit, were wounded.

He said the firefight happened after civilians reported the presence of rebels in the said barangay to military authorities.

http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/clash-with-npa-rebels-leaves-2-soldiers-dead/