CARMEN, Surigao del Sur – Operating troops of the 36th Infantry “Valor” Battalion, encountered more or less Twenty-Five (25) CPP-NPA Terrorists (CNTs) believed to be composed of Sentro de Grabidab 16 (SDG16) and Squad 3, Platoon 1 of Weakened Guerilla Front 30, all under so-called North Eastern Mindanao Regional Committee (NEMRC) at Brgy. Esperanza, Carmen, Surigao del Sur at around 3:20 p.m., April 15, 2023.
36IB troops encountered said CNTs after responding and conducting clearing operations when residents of Brgy Esperanza tip off the presence of the said communist terrorists in their community. The encounter lasted fifteen (15) minutes which resulted in the capture of one (1) Light Machine Gun M60, three hundred (300) rounds linked 7.62mm ammunition, one (1) Dell Core i7 laptop, one (1) GoPro body cam, one (1) Baofeng Handheld Radio, assorted war materiel and personal belongings.
Lt. Col. Michael Rey S. Reuyan, Commanding Officer of 36IB, stated that the encounter are the result of relentless combat operations and support of the communities to the 36IB. ” Nagpapasalamat kami sa suporta at impormasyong ibinahagi ng mga taga Carmen, Surigao del Sur upang ating matunton ang pinagtatagoan ng mga teroristang grupo. Nawa’y patuloy niyong suportahan ang ating mga kasundalohan sa ating misyon na panatilihin ang kapayapaan sa Surigao del Sur,” Lt. Col. Reuyan said.
Likewise, the 901st Brigade Commander, Brig. Gen. George L. Banzon PA reminded the CNTs to end their fruitless propaganda, ”This continuous pursuit of revolution should now stop. It is not yet too late to educate yourself and not be alluded to the flowery words of the enemies. Let us stop the insurgency, let us stop these acts of terrorism and the killings”, BGen. Banzon emphasized.
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