Suspected NPAs kill banana firm guard, hurt 5 soldiers in South Cotabato

COTABATO CITY, Philippines – Suspected communist guerrillas killed a security guard of a banana company and wounded five soldiers in an attack late Tuesday night in Tampakan, South Cotabato.

Col. Ronald Jess Alcudia, 27th Infantry Battalion commander, said the soldiers were on foot patrol near the banana firm’s airstrip in Barangay (the village of) Kipalbig when attacked by undetermined number of men believed to be New Peoples’ Army (NPA) rebels.

Alcudia said earlier they received intelligence report that the rebels were planning to destroy the light aircraft parked at the firm’s airstrip.

Acting on the report, Alcudia deployed a team of soldiers to Barangay Kipalbig.

Killed was security guard Melchor Galamagang.

The wounded infantrymen were Privates First Class (PFCs) John Ivan Suarte, Danny Mark Tandog, John Paul Salindong, Mohammad Ali and Alfred Ablanzar. Three of them suffered minor injuries and are out of the hospital, while Ali and Ablanzar were moved to a private hospital in General Santos City.

After a 30-minute firefight, the guerrillas fled to the hinterlands of Barangay Kipalbig.

Alcudia could not say if the NPA suffered casualties.