TACLOBAN CITY – A member of the Communist Party of the Philippines–New People’s Army (CPP-NPA) was killed while two others were captured after government troops launched successive operations against communist insurgents in Paranas, Samar, on Saturday, September 13.
According to the Philippine Army’s 8th Infantry Division (8ID), soldiers from the 46th Infantry Battalion were conducting security operations in Barangay Concepcion when they clashed with remnants of the Special Operations Group (SOG), Yakal Platoon, Sub-Regional Committee (SRC) Browser of the Eastern Visayas Regional Party Committee (EVRPC).
A series of three firefights later that day left one rebel dead, identified as Gerry Dela Cruz, alias “Justin,” and resulted in the capture of two others identified only as “Aye,” a political guide of SRC Browser, and “Tintin,” a member of the EVRPC Regional Security Force.
Troops recovered three M16 rifles, two .45-caliber pistols, three backpacks, three bandoliers, subversive documents, and other war materiel from the encounter sites.
Major General Adonis Ariel Orio, 8ID commander, commended the troops’ “vigilance and dedication,” saying the operations showed steady progress in dismantling the communist movement’s armed capability in Samar.
“These successful engagements are proof that our relentless pursuit operations are effectively dismantling the armed capability of the communist terrorist group. We will continue to hunt down these remnants until they can no longer threaten the peace and progress of Samar,” Orio said in a statement.
Colonel Arlino Sendaydiego, commander of the 801st Infantry Brigade supervising the 46IB, lauded the soldiers’ “swift and decisive action” and again urged remaining insurgents to surrender and avail themselves of government assistance.
Lieutenant Colonel Marvin Inocencio, commander of the 46IB, which is based in Calbiga town, also in Samar, assured the unit remains “steadfast and relentless” in its mission to end local insurgency.
The 8ID said intensified military operations would continue to dismantle the remaining EVRPC formations in Samar and across Eastern Visayas to ensure communities are free from insurgent threats.
(LIZBETH ANN A. ABELLA)
