Military claims thwarting NPA attack on 2 Batangas police stations

SAN PEDRO CITY — Government troops have virtually “cordoned off” remote and upland areas in Batangas province, where military operations continued to track down rebel forces.

The combat operations went on Sunday after members of the Philippine Air Force (PAF) and the police twice encountered a “company-sized” group of about 85 New People’s Army (NPA) rebels in Sitio (sub-village) Kapehan, Barangay (village) Patugo, Balayan town on Saturday morning. Two Air Force personnel were wounded, according to a report from the Batangas police.

Major Engelberto Nioda Jr., commander of the 730th Combat Group-Air Force, said at least 14 rebels were wounded.

“They are currently on the run towards Calaca and Tuy (towns),” Nioda said in a phone interview on Sunday.

Warning issued 

Nioda said the military, six days ago, gathered intelligence of the rebels’ plan to attack the police stations of Balayan and Calaca.

“(But) we were able to track them down and so prevented the (supposed) tactical offensives,” he said.

Nioda said they had recommended to the local governments to evacuate residents close to the area of the operations. He said about 60 individuals were evacuated from Tuy to keep them from getting into the crossfire.

Batangas police director Sr. Supt. Alden Delvo, in a separate phone interview, said the police had issued a “warning order” to residents in the three towns about the ongoing military operations.

Delvo, however, clarified that the operations were taking place in the mountains and very far from the communities.

“We’ve cordoned off that part of the mountains to keep the fighting from spilling into the (town centers),” he said. /je