2 NPA 'members' killed in clash with soldiers in NegOr

From the Philippine News Agency (Jun 21, 2019): 2 NPA 'members' killed in clash with soldiers in NegOr

Two suspected members of the New People’s Army (NPA), the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), were killed in a clash early Friday with government troops in the hinterlands of Barangay Talalak in Santa Catalina, Negros Oriental.

The bodies of the two unidentified alleged NPA members were recovered afterwards, according to reports from the Negros Oriental Provincial Police Office (NOPPO) and the 94th Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army.

Initial reports said that at around 4:55 a.m., a group of more or less 20 fully armed men believed to be NPA rebels allegedly harassed the Kakha SCAA (Special Civilian Armed Auxiliary) patrol base at Sitio Kakha by firing from an estimated distance of 100 meters.

Cpl. Rainier Artieda, assistant detachment commander, immediately deployed his forces and fired back at the suspected NPA members, which resulted in a firefight for about 30 minutes, after which the latter fled in different directions.

No casualty was reported on the government side.

The government troops recovered one long magazine for M-16 rifle and two short magazines, ammunition, an unexploded hand grenade, an empty shell for M203 and other personal effects.

The bodies of the slain suspected NPA members are still in the area, waiting to be transported to the Santa Catalina town proper for identification and disposition, said Col. Raul M. Tacaca, the provincial police director of Negros Oriental.

The Kakha SCAA is part of the 12th SCAA Battalion of the Philippine Army, which is under the operational control of the 94th IB.

With the recent arrival of the 11th IB in Negros Oriental, there are now three Army battalions in the province to address the insurgency problem.

The CPP-NPA is considered as a terrorist organization by several countries including the Philippines, United States and European Union.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1072979