DAVAO CITY – Military operations against communist rebels have intensified in the southern Filipino province of Davao Oriental following the daring escape of a government soldier held prisoner by insurgents in Man-ay town, officials said Monday.
Officials said the relentless campaign aims to break the backbone of the New People’s Army in the province where Cpl. Johannes Parreño was taken hostage on June 10 at a road block set up by rebels.
Parreño, a member of the 28th Infantry Battalion, managed to escape from his captors in Lambog village on August 17 while rebels were trying to evade troops sent to rescue the soldier, according to army Maj. Ezra Balagtey, a spokesman for the Eastern Mindanao Command.
He said the soldier was seized by rebels along with a government militia, Dindo Sagayno, who also escaped on July 6 after army forces clashed with the NPA band holding them prisoners in Taguibo village in Davao Oriental’s Mati City. Since then, rebels have been on the run until troops tracked them down in Man-ay town, about 74 kilometers from Mati City.
Balagtey, quoting a report from Lt. Col Jacob Thadeus Obligado, commander of the 67th Infantry Battalion, said Parreño’s escape came while his troops were pursuing the rebels after civilians reported the presence of the insurgents.
“We have been tracking the abductors which became the basis of the sustained and relentless focused military operations to rescue our soldier, which eventually paid off,” Obligado was quoted as saying.
There was no immediate statement from the NPA which has been fighting for many decades now for the establishment of a communist regime in the country. (Mindanao Examiner)
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