Three Rebels Killed in Abra Clash, Military Operations Continue

Three alleged communist rebels were killed in a clash with government troops in Licuan-Baay, Abra, on Tuesday, as military operations continued against alleged remnants of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army Ilocos-Cordillera Regional Committee. Composite troops from the 50th and 98th Infantry Battalions encountered about 10 armed rebels in the village of Bonglo at around 11:10 a.m., said Captain Ed Rarugal of the 5th Infantry Division’s Public Affairs Office. Three rebel bodies and three firearms — two M16 rifles and an M14 rifle — were recovered from the encounter site, he said. No government casualties were reported. — Artemio A. Dumlao