4 Army soldiers hurt in Isabela clash
CITY OF ILAGAN, Isabela — Four Army soldiers were wounded in a 30-minute gun battle between the Army’s 95th Infantry Battalion and 10 members of the New People’s Army (NPA) in the mountains of Capellan in this city on Friday, a report said Saturday.
Major Jekyll Dulawan, Philippine Army’s 5th Infantry Division spokesperson, said the wounded soldiers were airlifted from the site by the Philippine Air Force-Tactical Operations Group 2 and immediately brought to the military hospital for treatment.
Dulawan said villagers tipped the soldiers about the presence of NPA rebels belonging to the Regional Sentro De Gravidad (RSDG) of the Komiteng Rehiyon-Cagayan Valley (KR-CV) in the area who were allegedly extorting food from them.
The soldiers who were sent to look for the armed men in the area encountered the rebels Friday morning, Dulawan said. He did not specify the exact time the firefight started.
Seized from the encounter site were an M16 rifle, two shotguns, three magazines, and 53 bullets for an M16 rifle, five shotgun shells, and personal belongings.
