1 killed, 6 hurt in Compostela Valley clash

From the Sun Star-Davao (Mar 5): 1 killed, 6 hurt in Compostela Valley clash

ANOTHER communist rebel was killed, while six soldiers were wounded after the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the New People's Army (NPA) engaged in a series of firefights on Saturday in Compostela Valley Province.

Five soldiers from the 46th Infantry Batallion (IB) were wounded after suspected members of the New People's Army (NPA) detonated an improvised explosive device (IED) in Mabini, Compostela Valley around 12:45 a.m., Saturday.

The Peace and Development Team of the 46th IB were conducting road security patrol along Sitio Logdeck and Sitio Candinuyan, Barangay Golden Valley when they were hit by an IED explosion allegedly coming from a group of communist rebels.

Four among the five who were hurt in the incident were rushed to the Davao Regional Hospital in Apokon, Tagum City while the other one was brought to the Camp Panacan Station Hospital.

10th Infantry Division (ID) public information officer Captain Rhyan Batchar, in a statement furnished to Sun.Star Davao on Saturday, said, "The soldiers' identities are being withheld while their families are being informed of their conditions."

10th ID commander Major General Rafael Valencia, in a statement, also said that the NPA's wanton laying of IED is a clear disregard of the people's safety who are also using the same road that the patrolling soldiers were traversing at the time of the incident.

"Our soldiers were there to ensure that government projects will be fully implemented," Valencia added.

Not long after the said incident, AFP reported another armed encounter at around 7 a.m., the same day.

A member of the NPA was killed while a Cafgu Active Auxillary (CAA) was hurt after forces from the 60th Infantry Battalion and CAAs of Delta Company of the 72nd Infantry Batallion were involved in another firefight.

The troops were verifying reports on the presence of rebel groups led by an alias Macatindog in Sitio Agsam, Barangay Datu Ampunan in the same province when they chanced upon a group of armed NPA's.

The encounter lasted for 30 minutes which resulted in the fall of one NPA member.

His comrades reportedly have to leave him behind as they were already losing the battle. The soldiers also recovered an M14 rifle while clearing the area.

The hurt CAA was then brought to Metro Davao Medical Research Center while the body of the unidentified NPA is at Camp Panacan after being airlifted from the encounter site.

Major General Rafael Valencia, 10ID Commander expressed his grief on the death of another fellow Filipino.

Through a statement, he said "We urge the remaining NPAs to return to the folds of the law. The futility of the armed struggle have only brought countless miseries to many Filipino families."

http://www.sunstar.com.ph/davao/local-news/2016/03/05/1-killed-6-hurt-compostela-valley-clash-460986