6 soldiers killed in Camarines Sur NPA attack

MANILA, Philippines - The Armed Forces of the Philippines has deployed around 300 soldiers to run after the communist rebels who staged an ambush on Sunday in Camarines Sur, which resulted to the death of six soldiers.

The Army’s 9th Infantry Division (ID) Maj. Harold Cabunoc said the troops will come from the Third Scout Rangers Battalion and the 42nd Infantry Battalion. He said the pursuit operations will be concentrated in the areas of Presentacion, Garchitorena, Goa and Ginapa. 

“The civilians are giving us information so anytime we can catch the perpetrators of the ambush,” Cabunoc said adding that they are pursuing around 30 to 40 insurgents. 

He said two helicopters from the Tactical Operations Group-5 are also on standby in case the troops would need them on their operations.

Killed during the ambush in Presentacion, Camarines Sur were 1Lt. Miguel Logronio Jr., Cpl. Arturo Hernandez, Pfc. Albert Jamera, Pfc. Edwin Britannico and two others who were not named. They, along with eight other companions, were running after insurgents who attacked soldiers securing an infrastructure project in the province on Saturday. 

Soldiers who were part of the ambushed squad claimed that the New People’s Army also suffered casualties but did not cite speci-fic figures.

NPA a spent force

Cabunoc said they are not treating the incident as a huge setback and even praised the soldiers who fought the attacking rebels.

 “They scored against the 9th ID but it was not a big loss. It highlighted the bravery of our soldiers. They fought and they did not surrender even if they were outnumbered, even if the enemies used huge explosives,” Cabunoc said.  

“They (soldiers) fought even if they were wounded, they fought until they lost ammunitions,” he added.

Despite the setback, the AFP maintained that the NPA is already a “spent force.”

“The atrocities of the NPA had been confined to few areas. That will be subject of focus in our next campaign. Their actions are confined to Samar, Bicol, Compostela Valley, Davao and Negros. That will be the focus of our next campaign,” AFP spokesman Lt. Col. Arnulfo Burgos Jr. said.

“The NPA wants to project a semblance of strength,” he added.

Cabunoc said they will continue to convince the NPA rebels to surrender and to return to the fold of law.

“Firefights and killings are not the solutions to the problem. The government is showing the people that it is serious in addressing social problems,” he said. 

The AFP had previously admitted that it cannot meet the June 30 deadline of wiping out insurgency in the country. Military data showed that the communist movement has around 4,700 followers nationwide.  – With Cet Dematera, AP