ZAMBOANGA CITY -- Six soldiers were wounded when the New People's Army (NPA) rebels set off an improvised bomb during a firefight in the hinterlands of Davao del Sur, a military official said Tuesday.
Eastern Mindanao Command (Eastmincom) information officer Captain Alberto Caber said the incident took place around 2:40 p.m. Monday at Sitio Lutangan, Barangay Kapatagan, Digos City, Davao del Sur.
Caber said the clash ensued when the soldiers conduct security patrol following the reported presence of an NPA extortion unit at Sitio Lutangan, Barangay Kapatagan.
He did not release the identities of the wounded soldiers, except in saying they belong to the Army’s 10th Infantry Division.
The soldiers were airlifted to the hospital for treatment, he said.
Caber said the NPA rebels, who fled to the hinterlands, are led by a certain Ka Rangrang, a leader of the extortion unit of the NPA’s Southern Mindanao Regional Committee operating in Davao del Sur areas.
Lieutenant General Ricardo Rainier Cruz III, commander of Eastmincom, has ordered all his field commanders in the area to be extra vigilant in their campaign to win the peace.
The use of landmine is a violation of the provisions of the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian law, Cruz said. (Sunnex)