2 gov’t troops injured in Zamboanga del Norte blast

PAGADIAN CITY – Two soldiers were wounded when suspected communist rebels set off a landmine at the Palalian Bridge in Kalawit, Zamboanga del Norte on Friday.

Troops from the Charlie Company of the Army’s 42nd Infantry Battalion, were approaching the bridge after they saw at least three armed men laying something on it, Chief Inspector Helen Galvez, Western Mindanao police spokesperson, said on Saturday.

Galvez said as the soldiers were nearing the bridge, the rebels detonated the landmine. Two soldiers were injured but their names were not provided. It was not clear if the bridge suffered damage from the blast.

There was also a brief firefight, Galvez said, before the rebels withdrew towards Labason town.

Major Ronald Suscano, public affairs chief of the 1st Infantry Division based in Pulacan, Zamboanga del Sur, said the New People’s Army (NPA) operated in parts of Kalawit. LEAH AGONOY