Army troops seize NPA war materiel in MisOcc

Posted to the Philippine News Agency (Jul 12, 2021): Army troops seize NPA war materiel in MisOcc (By Teofilo Garcia, Jr.)

WAR MATERIEL. Troops of the 10th Infantry Battalion (IB) seize war materiel (shown in photo) after a clash with communist New People's Army (NPA) rebels in the hinterlands of Misamis Occidental on Sunday (July 11, 2021). The clash broke out as soldiers chanced upon the rebels who were on extortion operations in Concepcion town. (Photo courtesy of the 1st Infantry Division Public Affairs Office)

Government troops on Sunday seized war materiel belonging to the communist New People’s Army (NPA) following a clash in the hinterlands of Misamis Occidental, military officials announced Monday.

Lt. Col. Ray Tiongson, 10th Infantry Battalion commander, said the gunbattle broke out around 6:32 a.m. in the boundary of Barangays Small Potongan and Bagong Nayon in Concepcion town.

Tiongson said the troops encountered the group of NPA rebels while verifying reports of the terrorists' extortion activities in the two villages.

He said the soldiers outmaneuvered the rebels, who belong to the NPA’s Guerrilla Front Sendong, forcing the latter to flee following an hour-long firefight.

Tiongson said the troops recovered from the clash site the war materiel abandoned by NPA rebels including an AK-47 assault rifle with magazines and ammunition, a tablet, three cellular phones, five solar panels, medical supplies and paraphernalia, and flags of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF).

No one among the troops was killed nor wounded during the gunbattle, he noted.

“The communist terrorist group (CTG) in MisOcc (Misamis Occidental) is now in crisis as many of their members want to surrender. Because of this encounter, we are expecting more rebels to give themselves up and return to the fold of the law,” Tiongson said. “The successful military operation results from the collaboration with the local government unit, the stakeholders, and other government agencies in ending local communist armed conflict in Misamis Occidental.”

Maj. Gen. Generoso Ponio, 1st Infantry Division commander, commended the troops for quickly responding to reports and for the favorable result of the encounter.

“The CTGs have been instilling fear in the people for many years now. These terrorist groups are nearing their end. The series of successful encounters and the number of CTG members who surrendered have significantly shaken their organization,” Ponio said.

The CPP-NPA is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1146743