Death toll in Army, NPA clashes in Caraga, Northern Mindanao climbs to 7

CAGAYAN DE ORO, Philippines – The death toll in the fierce weekend clashes between the military and New People’s Army (NPA) in Northern Mindanao and Caraga regions has climbed to seven.

The Army said the number of rebels killed in military offensives against the NPA in Butuan, Caraga’s regional center, as well as Misamis Oriental and Bukidnon provinces in Northern Mindanao, increased since Friday, June 16. Many of those killed were women.

Major Francisco Garello Jr., spokesperson of the Army’s 4th Infantry Division, reported that the number of weapons abandoned by retreating rebels has risen to 20, including seven AK-47 rifles, four M4 rifles, four AR 18 rifles, one M16 rifle, two M14 rifles, and two M16 rifles with attached M203 grenade launchers.

Garello said two more bodies were recovered by government troops at the encounter site in a remote village in Butuan on Friday, along with another AK-47 rifle.

Major General Jose Maria Cuerpo, commander of the 4th Infantry Division (4ID), earlier said soldiers from the 29th Infantry Battalion, supported by the Philippine Air Force’s (PAF) Turkish-made T129B attack helicopters, killed three rebels, including two females and a male companion in Butuan on Friday.

Garello said the bodies of a female and a male, both NPA rebels, were subsequently found at the June 16 encounter site along the slopes of Mount Apo-Apo in Barangay Anticala in Butuan City the following day.

This marked the first time that the Turkish-made T129B attack helicopters, acquired by the government through a US$269-million government-to-government contract with Turkey, were used in military operations against the NPA.

Garello said the bodies of the five NPA rebels killed in Butuan would be brought down from the mountains by Monday, June 19.

In Misamis Oriental, a female rebel armed with an AK-47 rifle, was killed after an encounter with soldiers in Sitio Kalhaan, Barangay Minalwang earlier.

In Bukidnon province, Brigadier General Michele Anayron, commander of the Army’s 403rd Infantry Brigade, reported that soldiers encountered at least 15 NPA rebels in Sitio Malinao, Barangay Kalasungay, Malaybalay City.

Anayron said another female NPA rebel was killed after a 15-minute gunbattle with soldiers from the 8th Infantry Battalion, with no reported casualties among the Army.

He said an AK-47 rifle, an M14 rifle, and an improvised anti-personnel landmine were later found at the encounter site. – Rappler.com