Tension grips southern Bukidnon town as soldiers, NPA rebels fight for hours 

CAGAYAN DE ORO, Philippines – Tension gripped a southern town of Quezon in Bukidnon province as government troops and New People’s Army (NPA) rebels fought for hours near the boundaries of Northern Mindanao and Davao region on Sunday, September 10.

A soldier from the Army’s 39th Infantry Battalion was killed in the exchange of firepower, police said. 

Captain Anthony Tito, the spokesman of the Army’s 10th Infantry Division, said soldiers were pursuing a group of about 20 NPA rebels and caught up with them in the village of Linabo, some 18 kilometers from the town center of Quezon.

He said the rebels were trying to link up with another NPA group in the area.

The town of Quezon shares boundaries with Davao Oriental and Davao del Norte, two provinces in a region that has been declared insurgency-free by the government.

“Unfortunately, one soldier died in the encounter,” Tito said.

PNP-Northern Mindanao spokesperson Major Joanne Navarro identified the fatality as 29-year-old Private 1st Class Randy Ganzon, a member of the Army’s 39th Infantry Battalion which is based in Makilala town, Cotabato province.

Navarro said the remains of Ganzon were brought to a mortuary in Maramag town, Bukidnon.

Fort Cabarde of the Quezon public information office said there has been no report of evacuations from the barangay officials of Linabo as of posting time. – Rappler.com