4 suspected rebels slain in Masbate clash

LEGAZPI CITY––Four suspected New People’s Army (NPA) rebels were killed Friday in a clash with Army and police troops at the boundary of Esperanza and Placer towns in Masbate province.

Army Major John Paul Belleza, public affairs chief of the 9th Infantry Division, reported that the bodies of the slain rebels were in the custody of the Masbate police for identification.

Belleza said the Army troops were responding to a call from villagers who sighted armed men at the village of Baras in Esperanza and Barangay Manlut-od in Placer at 5:50 a.m. when they spotted around 20 suspected NPA guerrillas.

The soldiers and police engaged the armed men in a running gun battle that led to the death of the four rebels, said Belleza.

No casualty was reported on the government side, he added.

He said government troops recovered five assault rifles, a handgun, two rocket-propelled grenades, a land mine, and a hand grenade.

Army troops were scouring the areas in pursuit of the rebels, Belleza said. INQ

lzb