(UPDATE) Rebel leaders arrested in Davao del Sur

MANILA, Philippines (Xinhua) - Philippine security forces had arrested two leftist New People's Army leaders in the southern Philippine province of Davao del Sur yesterday afternoon, a military official said today.

Eduardo Ano, commander of the Army's 10th Infantry Division, said the two NPA leaders were nabbed by joint military and police operatives at around 3:20 p.m. local time Friday in a village in Matanao town.

He named the suspects as Raunil Mortejo, alias Nestor and Angkol, commanding officer of a sub-regional guerrilla unit of the Southern Mindanao Regional Committee, and his wife Jasmine Badilla, alias Antali, head of the regional medical staff of the same rebel committee.

Ano said the arrest of the two was "a big setback" to the NPA.

The NPA has been waging a guerrilla campaign against the government in the countryside for four decades. Military estimates the NPA strength at more than 4,000 men scattered in over 60 guerrilla fronts throughout the country.