ILOILO CITY – Two soldiers were wounded in an encounter with the New People’s Army (NPA) in Barangay Igpaho, Tubungan town, Iloilo province on Wednesday, January 17.
TWO soldiers were wounded in an encounter in Tubungan, Iloilo on January 17.
Lt. Col. J-Jay Javines, spokesperson of the 3rd Infantry Division (ID), said the 61st Infantry Battalion deployed troops to the area after they received information from residents about the presence of communist rebels.
Troopers engaged 15 members of the Puregold Platoon led by Nahum Camariosa of the NPA Southern Front Committee in Panay Island in a gun battle that lasted for 12 minutes.
The NPA withdrew in different directions but two soldiers under the 61st IB were wounded. The 3rd ID have yet to disclose their names as of posting time.
The 3rd ID said this as a manifestation of support from the community in the government campaign against the NPA.
"We intensified our monitoring and operations to ensure that these peace spoilers do not have the opportunity to unleash violence. Your Army is relentless in its fight against the decades-long insurgency in the area, rendering the communist terrorist group irrelevant in Western and Central Visayas,” said Major Gen. Marion Sison, 3rd ID commander.