4 rebels killed in ComVal clashes

TAGUM CITY, Davao del Norte – At least four communist rebels were killed in two recent clashes with government forces in Compostela Valley, a military official reported Saturday.

Captain Alberto Caber,  spokesman of the military’s Eastern Mindanao Command based in Davao City, said it was possible more rebels were killed or wounded in the clashes, which occurred in the villages of Teresa and Malamodao in the municipality of Maco in Compostela Valley on Wednesday and Friday, respectively.

Caber said the bodies of three rebels who figured in Wednesday’s clash in Teresa were found in a forested area during a military follow-up operation. The dead included two women.

“They and another dead rebel were concealed in a forested area and might have died from loss of blood,” Caber said.

He said another rebel, a man in his 50s, was killed in Friday’s clash in Malamodao.

Despite its diminishing grip on hinterland villages, the New People’s Army continues to be active in parts of Mindanao, including Compostela Valley.