Philippine Army troops continue to pursue suspected members
of the rebel New People’s Army (NPA) following two sporadic clashes early this
week at Barangay Talalak in Sta. Catalina town, Negros Oriental.
Lt. Col. Harold Anthony Pascua, commander of the 79th
Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army based in Siaton, Negros Oriental,
disclosed that the brief encounters with at least seven suspected NPA rebels on
Saturday and Sunday were an offshoot of a report from civilians in the area.
The tip received by the Army said there were armed men
allegedly harassing local residents and who appeared to be trying to retrieve
some rice and food stuff in a nearby sub-village, said Lt. Col. Pascua over the
phone Tuesday afternoon.
Pascua said he deployed his men from the Kakha detachment
immediately and at around 8:40 a.m. Saturday, while on patrol to verify the
civilians’ report, they were fired upon by the small band of suspected rebels
which resulted in an exchange of gunfire that lasted for about two minutes.
The following day, around noontime and during pursuit
operations, the government troops once more engaged the alleged rebels in
another firefight for about 10 minutes before the latter fled, said Pascua.
The armed men, led by a certain “Jimlan” are “remnants” of the
NPA’s South East Front who are always on the run, according to Pascua.
There were no casualties on the government side while Pascua
said they are still verifying reports of wounded or killed men on the side of
the armed group.
The 79th IB commander has highlighted the fact that the
populace now has have the confidence of “our local defense system”,
particularly the detachments and in turn, “these detachments have now the
capability and responsiveness to act on security concerns of the communities”.
The province
of Negros Oriental
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=773177
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