Philippine Police, Military Kill 7 Communist Insurgents in Western Philippines - Reports

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 15th August, 2018) Philippine security forces killed seven militants of New Peoples Army (NPA), the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines, as a result of a violent clash in the western province of Antique on Wednesday morning, local media reported.

According to the Manila Times newspaper, the shooting between the sides erupted when the NPA militants refused to hand over two of their members at the authorities' request, and lasted for around half an hour.

The outlet added that neither the police nor the military had reported any casualties on their part. The authorities confiscated the militants' equipment, gadgets and a vehicle as well as five grenades and four handcrafted firearms, the newspaper said.

The Philippine police's Chief Superintendent John Bulalacao, in turn, called for enhanced security measures at police stations following the attack.

"I require all police stations within my AOR [area of responsibility] to beef up their security and prevent the NPA from launching attacks in retaliation following this accomplishment," Bulalacao was quoted as saying by the outlet.

On Friday, media reported that around 100 NPA insurgents launched an attack on a police station in the east of the country.

The NPA, which has been involved in an armed conflict with the government for nearly 50 years, is officially recognized as a terrorist organization by the Philippines, the United States and the European Union.