3 suspected rebels slain in Camarines Norte clash

IRIGA CITY – Three suspected members of the New People’s Army (NPA) were killed in a firefight with government soldiers in Jose Panganiban town in Camarines Norte province Thursday morning, the military said.

Capt. Joash Pramis, spokesperson of the Army’s 9th Infantry Division, said soldiers were on patrol at 6:30 a.m. when they engaged in a fierce firefight with an undetermined number of communist rebels at Sitio (sub-village) Banasi, Barangay (village) Sta Cruz.

The firefight lasted for almost an hour and led to the killings of the three still unidentified rebels and the recovery of two M16, AK47 and M14 rifles, a grenade launcher and two improvised explosive devices, Pramis said. No one was hurt on the government’s side.

Army troops were pursuing the other rebels who escaped after the clash, Pramis said.