THE Philippine Army recovered eight anti-personnel and two anti-tank mines as well as about 1,900 rounds of .30 caliber machine guns buried from an abandoned camp of the New People’s Army (NPA) in Himamaylan City, Negros Occidental on Thursday, September 22.
Lt. Col. Van Donald Almonte, Commanding Officer of 94th Infantry Battalion (IB), in a statement, said that a concerned citizen reported the location of the anti-personnel mines used by the terrorists in spreading fear to ordinary civilians.
“The tipster's motivation was to save lives of possible victims who may include his loved ones and innocent civilians once the mines are armed,” he said.
He also said that the troops from the 94th Infantry Battalion were immediately deployed to act on the information and recover a cache of weapons belonging to the group.
Military reports showed that the landmines were kept inside a drum while the ammunition were inside a box.
It added that six of the eight anti-personnel mines recovered are still serviceable while one of the two anti-tank mines can still explode.
The army official noted that the land mines were possibly made in the province at the height of the insurgency problem, adding that these were designed against human targets to either injure or kill the victims.
On top of that, Alomonte emphasized that the mines are also capable of damaging light and heavy vehicles while the anti-tank mines are designed to destroy or damage heavy vehicles including tanks and armored vehicles.
Almonte stressed that this is a clear manifestation of their deceptions and that they are only using the masses for their foods and other needs but will not spare them when they implement their terroristic intentions.