BUTUAN CITY, Philippines - At least 10 New People's Army rebels were killed Sunday when army soldiers raided their camp in Loreto, Agusan del Sur, a military official said Monday.

Col. Emiliano Gupana, commander of the Army's 402nd Infantry Brigade based in Prosperidad town, said a tip from civilians led troops to the camp of the Front Committee 34 of the NPA's Southern Mindanao Regional Party Committee (SMRC) in Sta. Teresa village around 6 a.m. Sunday.

A brief firefight ensued. The rebels, numbering at least 50, later fled.

Gupana said only the bodies of the four rebels have been recovered by the pursuing soldiers.

No casualty was reported on the government side.

A total of 13 high powered firearms, including nine M-16 Armalite rifles, an M203 grenade launcher, a shotgun, a .38 cal. pistol, Claymore mine, documents, food supplies, and personal belongings were recovered from the camp, he said.

"This is a huge setback for the NPA. Our success is due to the support of the civilians, particularly the lumad (indigenous people) in the area," Gupana told the Inquirer.

According to Gupana, one of those killed was a certain Ka Sarah, wife of Ka Boyet Tindogan, the leader of the NPA's Front Committee 34 that operates in Agusan del Sur, Compostela Valley and Davao Oriental.

Ka Sarah held a key position in the communist rebel front which carried out the raid on the police station of nearby Sta. Josefa town last July, Gupana said.