ARMY soldiers recovered four improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and high-powered firearms after an encounter with rebels in Barangay Panangan, Maco, Compostela Valley Tuesday morning.
Captain Manuel Garcia, spokesman of the Army's 10th Infantry Division, said that around 10 a.m. Tuesday, troops from the 6th Scout Ranger company figured in a clash with about 40 New People's Army (NPA) members belonging to the Local Terrorist Front-2.
Apart from the four IEDs, soldiers recovered two M16 and one M14 rifles.
The bombs were recovered in an NPA encampment, Garcia said.
No casualty was reported on the government side but the 10th ID has yet to determine the number of rebel casualties.
"The recovery of the four bombs is a welcome development as our people will be a lot safer," Garcia said. "These bombs are usually planted by the NPA on the roadside, which causes a lot of damage and danger to the people."
The past weeks saw several rebel atrocities in Compostela Valley, which the military said is one of the country's NPA-infested areas.
A day after the elections, five people -- a poll watcher, two soldiers and two militiamen -- were killed, while 12 others were wounded when NPA members ambushed a convoy of election workers and soldiers securing the delivery of election paraphernalia from Barangay Mahayahay to Maragusan proper.
On May 12, four unarmed Army soldiers were abducted by alleged rebels while attending a child's birthday party in Mawab town, also in Compostela Valley around 12 noon.