Suspected NPA member killed in Lanao del Sur clash —military

A suspected member of armed rebel group New People’s Army was killed in an encounter in Maguing, Lanao del Sur on Saturday afternoon, the military said Sunday.

Troops from the 5th Infantry Battalion under Lieutenant Colonel Romulus Rabara went to the mountains initially for a mission to exhume the remains of a slain NPA member in 2018.

On their way, they were fired upon by a group of armed personalities, prompting the troops under commander Lieutenant Julius Cesar Mendez to return fire.

After over an hour of firefight, a body of a suspected NPA member was found in the area being behind by fleeing comrades.

The soldiers recovered four high-powered firearms consisting of two M16 rifles and two M79 Grenade Launchers, a low-powered firearm, a hand grenade, a bandoleer, 10 magazines with ammunition, 22 rounds of ammunition for M203, and five combat packs with personal belongings.

Brigadier General Jose Maria R. Cuerpo II , 103rd Infantry Brigade commander, thanked the 103rd MILF Base Command and the concerned local residents for their support for the operation. —Joviland Rita with Merlyn Manos/LBG, GMA News