‘Rizal under NPA threat’

From the Manila Times (Dec 18): ‘Rizal under NPA threat’

THE military and police authorities in Rizal should not be complacent as the New People’s Army (NPA) might launch sporadic attacks next year, the commander of the 202nd Infantry Brigade (202IB) said.

Brig. Gen. Arnulfo Burgos, 202IB commanding general, said they have gathered intelligence reports that some factions of the rebel group might stage attacks or raids in some towns of Rizal.

He hinted that the attacks might be similar to what the rebel group carried out in Hamilo Coast, a posh beach resort in Nasugbu, Batangas in January 2017.

In the attack carried out by about 30 rebels, the security forces of the posh resort were disarmed and the rebels took away more than 40 assorted firearms.

But Burgos said there are no intelligence reports yet that the same NPA faction would be responsible in the raid that might be launched in any part of Rizal.

“The Hamilo Coast attackers last January 2017 came from Mindoro,” Burgos, a former spokesman of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, told The Manila Times.

Most parts of Rizal province, according to the army general, lie on the Sierra Mountain range, which had been the hotbed of rebels since the 1970s. Several steep terrains of the province are difficult to navigate and the mountain covers are thick.

Among the difficult to traverse mountainous towns are Tanay, Baras, Jalajala, Cardona and Morong.

https://www.manilatimes.net/rizal-under-npa-threat/484155/