7 soldiers hurt in troops-NPA clashes in Surigao del Norte

MANILA, Philippines - Seven soldiers were hurt in successive clashes with the New People’s Army (NPA) in Surigao del Norte, the military said Thursday.

Cpt. Christian Uy, spokesman of the Army’s 4th division, said two of the soldiers were wounded in an encounter Tuesday afternoon in Barangay Siagao in San Miguel town.

Five others were hurt in a firefight Wednesday morning in the same area.

The clashes transpired after the military had conducted patrols to verify reports about the presence of armed men in the area.

Uy said two soldiers sustained bullet wounds during the first encounter that occurred Tuesday at about 4 p.m.

The military has yet to confirm whether the insurgents sustained casualties during the clash. Traces of blood, however, were seen by field troops in the encounter site.

Soldiers from the Army’s 36th battalion then conducted pursuit operations, resulting in another clash last Wednesday.

Uy said four soldiers were wounded by a landmine planted by the NPA while another one sustained a bullet wound.

The strength of the communist rebellion stood at about 4,000 as of end-June, virtually unchanged over the last three years, based on latest military estimates.  – Alexis Romero