Two soldiers wounded: Rebels ambush military convoy delivering relief goods in Samar

CEBU, Philippines – Two soldiers were wounded yesterday morning when communist rebels ambushed a convoy of four trucks that were transporting relief goods to the victims in the typhoon Nona-devastated Northern Samar province.

The convoy, consisting of two M35 Army trucks, an Elf truck and a mini-dump truck, and carrying 16 soldiers of the 546th Engineering Battalion and the 81st Division Reconnaisance Company, was fired upon by the rebels along the Maharlika Highway in Pinabacdao town of Samar.

A police report said a firefight ensued and went on for about 45 minutes between government troops and the rebels. Two soldiers were wounded: Private First Class Rowel Talahota, driver of the truck, and PFC Circado Cado. Even if their injuries were not serious, they were brought to a hospital in Tacloban City.

Another report said that two female personnel of the Department of Social Welfare and Development-Region 8, who were with the convoy and were returning to their base in Tacloban City, were unharmed. The two, Jhoanne Cuesta and Jackeline Irlandez, due to fear of the incident, later decided to leave the convoy and commuted back to Tacloban.

Captain Isagani Viernes, 8th Infantry Division DPAU chief, said the convoy was on its way to Tacloban City to pick up more relief goods for the typhoon victims in Northern Samar.

“About 7:30am, while they were passing through Barangay Pahug in Pinabacdao, a undetermined number of rebels with high powered firearms fired at the convoy, two of our colleagues were wounded,” Viernes said.

Viernes said the trucks had DRRM tarpaulins indicating that the troops were not there for combat operations but for humanitarian assistance operations.

“This is a deliberate atrocity by the rebels, and a clear manifestation of their complete disregard in assisting our fellowmen who are at this point of time are in need of assistance because of the onslaught brought by Typhoon Nona,” he added.

Colonel George Domingo, commander of the 87th Infantry Battalion, told The Freeman that the convoy just came from Oras town in Eastern Samar, transporting relief goods for Nona victims in Northern Samar, and were on their way to Tacloban to get more goods, when waylaid at Pinabacdao, Samar, about 49 kilometers from the city.

Domingo also belied reports that there were lapses in military intelligence monitoring against the rebels’ operation in Samar, but it was a clear manifestation of the rebels’ deceitful operation.

“They just want to tell the world na malakas pa sila,” Domingo said, as he emphasized that the rebels’ talk of a ceasefire was only a way of fooling the people.

Demingo said this attack was part of the rebels’ activities to highlight their founding anniversary of the Communist Party of the Philippines on December 26.

The Philippine Army had already sent a reinforcement team from the 87th IB, based in Calbiga, Samar, to the ambush site. It further clarified that its humanitarian assistance or relief operations, with the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, will not be hampered and will continue for the sake of the typhoon victims. (FREEMAN)