DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Xinhua) - Suspected members of leftist rebel group New People's Army (NPA) shot and killed two soldiers in Compostela Valley today, a military official said.
Captain Ernest Carolina, spokesman of the Philippine Army's 10th Infantry Division, said the two soldiers were on their way back to their patrol base when they were shot at Anitapan village, Mabini town in Compostela Valley province at around 3 a.m. local time today.
"The soldiers were unarmed and in civilian clothes. The assailants, who were armed with pistols, immediately fled after the shooting," Carolina told Xinhua by mobile phone.
He said the attack could be the handiwork of the NPA's liquidation squad, which is believed to be active in the hinterland village.
Regional military officials have ordered intensified operations against the rebels following the escalation of violence which killed several people in southern Philippines in recent weeks.