Army troops kill 15 NPA rebels

SURIGAO CITY – Joint Army and police authorities, backed by helicopter gunships, have killed 15 left-wing rebels and captured another 12 after the rebels raided police stations in Surigao island, an army spokesman said yesterday.

The New People’s Army rebels were part of a 30-member group that attacked two police outposts on Siargao island in the southern region of Mindanao and killed two police officers late on Saturday, officials said. Four officers were also injured. Lt. Col. Romeo Brawner told reporters 15 rebels were killed and 12 were taken captive after gunbattles with the fleeing guerrillas on Sunday and early yesterday.

The Philippines has been battling communist rebels in 69 of 81 provinces across the country in a protracted conflict that has killed 40,000 people and stunted economic growth in one of Southeast Asia’s poorest states, reports said.

Poor intelligence work and network, laxity on the part of government forces and the police were blamed for the latest NPA raid and attack on two municipal police stations in Siargao Island, Surigao del Norte.

Two foreigners speaking on condition of anonymity who were former military officers in their country of origin, now retired, hinted that if only there were good local intelligence network and police preparedness the attacks would have been prevented.

The two retired foreign military officers had to cut short their vacation in Siargao and decided to return to Manila yesterday.

In an exclusive interview at the Surigao City port here the foreign nationals, told The STAR they wondered why the rebels were not detected on their way to Siargao since it would took the raiders four to five hours before reaching the island.

Residents along the shorelines of Dapa and General Luna towns saw armed men suspected to be NPA rebels arrive Friday afternoon but failed to notify their barangay officials.

The twin raids In Siargao Island is the 8th and 9th NPA raids to happen where police stations in Caraga Region are involved. Said  raids were all surprise attacks that rendered police stations helpless  with  firearms carted away  by raiding rebels.  The NPAs estimated to be around 90 to 120 fully armed guerillas swooped down and overran two municipal police stations at 10:30 p.m. Saturday and destroyed computers of nearby government offices situated inside the Dapa Municipal Hall compound and carted away a total of 16 long and short firearms.

The suspected rebels ordered all six policemen at Dapa town to lie face down and took away all service firearms and ammunitions in sight, destroyed the police office computers then fled.

However, before the attack, they managed to distribute pamphlets to residents in the area who did not even bother to inform the town’s police force, through text messages.

Simultaneous with the Dapa town attack, 14 kms. away, an estimated 30 communist rebels also swooped down the General Luna Municipal Police Station.

In Claver, Surigao del Norte, police operatives who were supposed to respond to the Siargao Island twin raids were ambushed killing two policemen and wounding three others, who are all members of the 1402nd Police Mobile Group stationed in Km., 90, Carasscal, Surigao del Sur. – With Ben Serrano