The communist New People’s Army (NPA) on Monday confirmed
the capture of an army soldier during a firefight in Gingoog City
Allan Juanito, the NPA spokesperson of the North-Central
Mindanao Regional Command, said that 26-year-old Pfc. Adonis Jess Maghanoy
Lupeba, serial no. 863573, married, of Iponan, Cagayan De Oro City, is now
considered as Prisoner of War (POW).
In a statement released to the local media, Juanito assured
the wife, relatives and friends of Lupeba that as a POW, the soldier is
protected under the rules of engagement, as mandated in the Comprehensive
Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and the International Humanitarian Law
(CARHRIHL).
He said that the NPA captured Lupeba during the siege of the
village hall of Alagatan in Gingoog City Saturday where the soldiers of the
army’s 58th Infantry Battalion were camping and while the others were playing
basketball.One soldier was killed while two other civilians, including a
14-year-old teenager, were wounded during the exchanged of gunfire that lasted
for about 30 minutes.
Juanito issued a public apology for the wounding of the two
civilians and promised to extend assistance to the families while issuing a
stern warning to the civilian communities who are coddling the military of dire
consequences.
Capt. Patrick Martinez, the spokesperson of the Cagayan De
Oro City-based army’s 4th Infantry Division, said that Lupeba voluntarily gave
up in exchanged of the civilians who were held captive and used as human
shields by the NPA rebels.
He said that during the initial investigation headed by
Gingoog City Mayor Marie Guingona, the civilians recalled that Lupeba shouted
to the NPA to ceasefire and offered him to be captured in order to spare the
innocent civilians.
Village Chief Evelyn Bucio of Alagatan reported that the
volley of gunfire damaged the village hall and the civilian outpost where the
soldiers and the civilians took cover during the firefight.(
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=782347
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