1 soldier killed, 2 hurt in Compostela Valley clash

One soldier was killed while two others were hurt in an hour-long firefight with suspected communist insurgents in the southern Philippine province of Compostela Valley on Wednesday, a military statement said. The Philippine Army's 10th Infantry Division, said the clash between elements of the 71st Infantry Battalion and the New People's Army erupted 11:50 a.m. in Barangay Tibagon in Pantukan town. "It is very unfortunate that another soldier has offered his ultimate sacrifice in defending the community," 10th ID spokesman Lt. Col. Lyndon Paniza said in the statement. He said the involved soldiers were part of the rescue and retrieval elements for the recent landslide in Panganason. Paniza said the rebels took advantage of "sowing terror" to the residents while the troops were busy responding to the landslide in Panganason, Pantukan. "This is how they (the NPAs) sympathize to the suffering of the victims, our constituents," he said. The military has shifted from rescue and retrieval to security mode after the local government of Pantukan terminated the retrieval operation to ensure the safety of the troops and other volunteer workers. Paniza did not identify the soldier who was killed in the firefight. The statement also made no mention how many were killed or hurt on the side of the suspected rebels. 1st Lt. Jeovani Toledo said local residents were the ones who reported the presence of armed men in their barangay, who they suspect to be members of the NPA. Private First Class Junriel Estopil, who was one of the wounded soldiers, said they engaged in a firefight with the rebels after an improvised landmine exploded followed by a "volume of fires" from the position of the suspected NPA members. Toledo said a helicopter from the Philippine Air Force brought the wounded soldiers to the Eastern Mindanao Command Camp Panacan Station Hospital while the soldier who was killed in combat was brought to the Villa Funeral Homes in Panabo City. - Kimberly Jane Tan/RSJ/KBK, GMA News