5 suspected NPA rebels slain in Negros Oriental firefight
DUMAGUETE CITY –– Five suspected members of the New People’s Army (NPA) were killed in a firefight with the military and police in Barangay Luyang, Mabinay town, Negros Oriental past midnight on June 18.
Among those killed in the 30-minute clash was the suspect in the murder of four policemen in Barangay Mabato, Ayungon town on July 18, 2019, said Captain Francis Salcedo, civil-military operations officer of the Philippine Army’s 11th Infantry Battalion.
Soldiers of the 11th IB and personnel from the police’s Regional Mobile Force Battalion led the operation after residents of Barangay Luyang informed them of the presence of the suspected communist rebels, said battalion commander Lt. Col. Ramir Redosendo.
Recovered from the site were three M16 rifles, an AK-47, and a .45 caliber pistol.
As of 11 a.m., authorities were still conducting clearing operations in the area.
