Army calls for probe in Agusan del Sur ambush staged by NPA

MANILA, Philippines - The Army on Wednesday called on civilian sectors to investigate the ambush staged by communist rebels in Agusan del Sur that left four persons dead and seven others wounded.

Maj. Gen. Oscar Lactao, chief of the Army’s 4th division, said those behind the attack should be made accountable for their actions.

“I urge the PNP (Philippine National Police), the Commission on Human Rights, and the Church to investigate this terroristic attack,” Lactao said in a statement.

“These NPAs (New People’s Army rebels) must be placed behind bars. We cannot just let them roam around and threaten the peace-loving people of Mindanao,” he added.

Four persons were killed and seven others, including a child, were wounded after suspected NPA members waylaid an ambulance in Sitio Latay, Barangay Marfil in Rosario town Sunday afternoon.

According to military reports, the victims came from a thanksgiving mass in Wayside Baptist Church and were on their way back to their homes when they ambush by about 20 armed men.

Maj. Christian Uy, spokesman of the Army’s 4th division, said the perpetrators may have been members of the NPA Guerilla Front 14 of the North Eastern Mindanao Regional Committee.

Lactao said the incident has proven that the NPA is “a terrorist group.”

“I strongly condemn this terroristic attack of the NPA that killed civilians and wounding others on board an ambulance,” he said.

Members of the 75th Infantry Battalion are now conducting pursuit operations against the rebels.