A suspected New People's Army (NPA) rebel was shot dead in an armed encounter with the Philippine Army (PA) in Iriga City, Camarines Sur early Saturday morning, Aug. 28.
Elements of the 49th Infantry Battalion (49IB) figured in a shoot-out with suspected members of the NPA's Bicol Regional Party Committee (BRPC) in Barangay San Vicente around 3:10 a.m.
Lt. Col. Benjamin Tapnio, battalion commander of the 49IB, said they received reports from the residents about the presence of armed men in their village, prompting the military to deploy forces.
The soldiers then spotted the group in the hinterlands of Barangay San Vicente which ended in a shootout. After a 15-minute firefight, the rebels were "forced to leave in haste leaving the body of their dead comrade," Tapnio said.
The military retrieved the body, an M16 rifle, materials used for making anti-personnel mines, and other personal belongings.
A total of 15 alleged communist rebels have already been killed in military engagements initiated by the Army in the province this year, said Maj. Gen. Henry Robinson, commander of Joint Task Force (JTF) Bicolandia.
Last Tuesday, an alleged communist hideout was discovered in Masbate as the military continues to pound the NPA's BRPC. The hideout -- which houses 23 houts, a training site, and a bomb-making area -- was overran by government troops after a heavy exchange of fire with around 60 insurgents.