NPA rebels nab 2 soldiers, 12 CAFGUs; demand stop to AFP attacks

Two soldiers and 12 members of the Citizens Armed Geographical Unit were abducted by the New People's Army in Agusan del Sur at dawn on Wednesday, the military has said.

In a statement, the Philippine Army's 4th Infantry Division said an estimated 50 rebels took the soldiers and the CAFGUs. They also took several guns in the process.

“The Army’s 3rd Special Forces Battalion is now pursuing the perpetrators who immediately fled after the incident. Soldiers were also sent to the area to investigate the incident,” the Army unit said in a statement.

Major General Ronald Villanueva, commander of 4th ID, said that the kidnapping happened without a firefight.

“We are still trying to find out what happened,” Villanueva said.

The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) owned up to the abduction.

It said the 14 “prisoners of war” taken in Agusan del Sur would be released if the military stopped its offensives against the rebels over the Christmas season.

“The 14 prisoners of war taken yesterday in Barangay New Tubigon, Sibagat, Agusan del Sur are being treated leniently," the CPP said in an email.

"It is best that they be released soonest so they can be with their families this Christmas [on December 25],” it added.

The NPA is the armed wing of the CPP.

“[Their release] can be realized if the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) will relent in its offensives to pave the way for their safe and orderly release,” the CPP said.

The CPP Central Committee has declared a unilateral ceasefire from 12:01 a.m. of December 24, 2018 to 11:59 p.m. of December 26, 2018, and 12:01 a.m. of December 31 to 11:59 p.m. of January 1, 2019.

The military, however, did not reciprocate such action, saying that the communist rebels would only fortify its ranks during the period. —NB, GMA News