Northern Samar map. INQUIRER FILES
TACLOBAN CITY — At least seven suspected members of the New People’s Army (NPA) were killed in an encounter with government troopers in a remote village of Bobon town, Northern Samar at about 3 a.m. on Sunday, April 30.
Reports from the local police station of Bobon and the 8th Infantry Division based in Catbalogan City, Samar, showed that the latest skirmish between government soldiers and communist rebels took place in Barangay Santander, a remote village located six kilometers away from the town proper of Bobon.
The soldiers, accompanied by the local police, went to the area to verify reports that some armed men were seen in Santander and nearby villages.
When the soldiers from the 803rd Infantry Brigade were in the vicinity of Santander, they encountered around 40 armed men who engaged them in a 10-minute firefight.
The rebels were identified as members of the sub-regional guerilla unit and remnants of the dismantled Front Committee-2, sub-regional committee Emporium of the Eastern Visayas Regional Party Committee (EVRPC) led by Mario Sevillano alias “Durok.”
The rebel leader was allegedly behind several attacks against government troops and civilians in Northern Samar.
The government troopers also conducted airstrikes since the area where the rebels were located was surrounded with anti-personnel mines.
The soldiers recovered a R4 rifle, two M16 rifles, and one AK47 rifle from the communist rebels.
In a statement, Major Gen. Camilo Ligayo, the commanding general of the 8th Infantry Division, commended his soldiers as he reiterated his call for the remaining NPA members to surrender and return to the folds of the law.
“We urge the remaining members of the communist terrorists to lay down their arms and go home to their families. The government is willing and eager to help you to start a normal life,” he said.
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