Residents who evacuated after Abra airstrike now back home

INQUIRER FILES

MANILA, Philippines — The residents who evacuated after the airstrike in Pilar, Abra have already returned to their residences, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said on Wednesday.

AFP spokesperson Col. Francel Margareth Padilla said that some 201 individuals or 58 families in Barangay Nagcanasan and 118 individuals or 34 families in Barangay Gapang have returned on April 4.

READ: PH Army used airstrikes vs NPA in Abra, spox confirms

“As for our evacuees, the day after the airstrike, they have returned to their houses,” Padilla told reporters in a phone interview.

This military operation was met with protests. Leftist groups troops in front of Camp Aguinaldo to condemn the aerial bombing in the said town.

READ: Airstrikes in Abra may derail peace talk resumption with NDFP; CHR probe urged

The airstrikes might be over, but the pursuit operations against some 20 NPAs in the area are still ongoing.

“The operation is still going on. We still have pursuit operations,” Padilla said.

A-29B Super Tucano aircraft to serve as “closed air support” for the 50th Infantry Battalion who figured in a firefight with the NPA on April 3, according to Army spokesperson Col. Louie Dema-ala.

Dema-ala said one Army personnel was injured during the clash.