Tuesday, June 17, 2008 Arroyo lauds Army for NPA camp raid
"CONGRATS to Bukidnon troops" was the text message sent to the Army's 4th Infantry Division after the successful raid by the 403rd Brigade at the regional headquarters of the New People's Army's (NPA) in Bukidnon on June 14.
But coming from no less than their commander-in-chief, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, the simple text message boosted the morale of the soldiers who are still in the ground as of this writing Monday.
The raid by the 4th ID's Special Operations Platoon at sitio Tinupungan, Barangay Santa Cruz, Quezon, Bukidnon was conducted after a tip from civilians.
The early morning raid was made difficult by the presence of about 60 rebels.
The firefight started 3:30 a.m. and lasted for more than three hours.
Three rebels who were identified as alias Tonio and alias Jake were killed from the said encounter. Both of them are members of Komisyon Mindanao (Kommid) Ordnance Staff.
The other rebel was identified as Grace, who was said to be a member of Kommid's medical staff.
The raiding troops also recovered one M16, one M14, one FAL, eight land mines, three sacks of bomb making materials, Robin R650 generator, and subversive documents.
It can be recalled that for the past months, several NPA camps were overrun by government troops in the areas of Surigao and Bukidnon; all credited to tips from the local leaders in the area. (BOT)
