NORTH COTABATO , Philippines – Two soldiers were injured Sunday when suspected communist rebels set off a roadside bomb following an encounter with government troops in Arakan town in this province.
Pfc. Oliver Magbanua and Cpl. Abdullah Camsa suffered shrapnel wounds in their bodies, according to Lt. Nash Sema, civil-military operations officer of the Army’s 57th Infantry Battalion.
Magbanua, Camsa, and their companions were heading for Barangay Kabalantian in Arakan to check on the reported presence of suspected New People’s Army (NPA) guerrillas believed planning to attack farming villages.
Sema said the rebels opened fire first at the arriving soldiers, triggering a 30-minute firefight which stopped only when the NPA ran out of bullets.
“We have been receiving information from villagers that several NPAs were wounded in the encounter. These reports are still unverified, “ Sema said.
The fleeing rebels managed to plant an improvised explosive device at the boundary of Barangays Sagundanon and Kabalantian, which they set off as pursuing soldiers approaches.
“The NPA is known for planting explosives that can kill civilians in retaliation for the losses they incur in the encounters with government troopers,†said Lt. Col. Nilo Vinluan, 57th IB commanding officer. – With Edith Regalado