Army officer killed in clash with Communist rebels

An Army junior officer was killed in a clash with communist rebels in Occidental Mindoro, the military said on Monday.

Soldiers of the Army’s 4th Infantry Battalion were on security patrol when it clashed with about 10 members of the New People’s Army (NPA) in Barangay (village) Batasan, San Jose town on Sunday at about 9:30 a.m., Southern Command Luzon spokesperson Maj. Angelo Guzman said.

First Lieutenant Mike Nollora sustained severe gunshot wounds in his  left thigh from the 10-minute firefight. He was given first aid but died at around 11 a.m. on the same day.

Lieutenant Colonel Randolph Cabangbang, spokesperson of the Army’s 2nd Infantry Division, said Nollora was hit on a major artery on his thigh.

A Huey helicopter of the Philippine Air Force arrived at about 3 p.m. because it took them time to clear the landing zone.

He hails from Davao del Norte and is a member of Philippine Military Academy Class of 2009. He is married with two children.

Pursuit operations were ordered against the rebels, Guzman said.

“It is saddening that we lost a young commander and a good officer while serving and protecting the people of Occidental Mindoro,” Southern Luzon Command Chief Lieutenant General Ricardo R. Visaya was quoted by Guzman as saying.

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