An Army soldier was killed while three others were wounded following an attack by suspected communist rebels in Compostela Valley Monday afternoon, the spokesman for the Philipine Army said Tuesday.
About 5:30 p.m. Monday, a land mine exploded while elements of the Army's 25th Infantry Battalion were conducting security patrols in San Vicente village in Montevista town, said Army spokesman Maj. Harold Cabunoc.
Cabunoc said that as the soldiers alighted from their vehicle to look for cover, more or less 15 New People's Army fired at them, triggering a firefight that lasted for several minutes.
The identities of the government casualties were not immediately known. The three wounded soldiers have since been taken to the COMVAL Regional Hospital for treatment.
Cabunoc deplored the use of land mines by the insurgents, stressing such violates the laws of armed conflict and Republic Act 9851, which punishes international humanitarian violations as domestic crimes.
Further, Cabunoc said the use of landmines "violates the agreement signed by both the GRP and the NDF panel, as contained in the Comprehensive Agreement on the Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CAHRIHL)."
The attack came a month before the NPA, the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines, observes its 43rd founding anniversary on March 29. Peace talks with the National Democratic Front of the Philippines remain stalled since August 2004.
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RSJ, GMA News Online
February 28, 2012 9:22am
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