Troops of 16th Infantry Battalion (16th IB) seized a New People’s Army (NPA) hideout, war materials and food supplies in the past three days of focus military operations (FMOs) in the hinterland areas of Kitaotao town, Bukidnon province.
In a statement sent to The Manila Bulletin on Tueday afternoon, 16th IB Civil Military Operations (CMO) officer First Lt. Jeffrey Paulo V. Alba said the discovery of the NPA hideout and the seizure of war materials, including bomb-making materials and improvised explosive devices (IEDs), in the different locations came about after the revelation of former rebels in the area.
Last Wednesday, August 5, joint forces of 16th IB and Third Infantry Battalion (3rd IB) recovered war materials that were buried in the hinterlands of Sitio Spring, Barangay Sinaysayan, Kitaotao town, Bukidnon, identified by the troops as one of the mobility corridors of the NPA.
Upon reaching the area, the 16th IB troops recovered an M1 Carbine rifle and eight magazines with 102 live ammunition, and five sets of detonating materials used for Improvised Explosive Device (IED). Later that day, another two IEDs, weighing five kilograms each, were also recovered in Sitio San Jose, Barangay Bulukbukan in the same municipality, the 16th IB CMO officer said.
On Friday, August 7, 16th IB troops were conducting operation when they discovered the NPA hideout located in Barangay Tandong of that same municipality that can accommodate approximately 20 persons, he said.
Recovered at the hideout were nine containers of rice and an anti-personnel mine that could be deadly both to soldiers and civilians.
“The recovery of IEDs with detonating components clearly describe the NPA’s intent on the continuous utilization of this prohibited device that poses serious danger not only to combatant but to non-combatant as well. In the agreement, the use of Improvised Explosive Device (IED) or mines violates the provisions of Part III, Article 2, Section 15 of the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHIHL) between the government and National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP),” the 16th IB CMO officer said.
The concerted effort of the 16th IB in the recovery of enemy’s war materials and supplies may have thwarted any hostile plan of the NPA to conduct terroristic activities especially in the vulnerable communities, he said.
“It only appears that these terrorists can put at risk the lives of the civilians just to do their atrocities and the implication it may cause to the community,” Alba added.
The 16th IB urged the local populace to continue their cooperation and support government’s effort in attaining peace and development in the area, the 16th IB CMO officer added.
https://mb.com.ph/2020/08/12/npa-hideout-war-materials-food-supplies-seized-in-bukidon/
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