By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

Two rebels from the New People’s Army (NPA) were killed in an encounter with the Philippine Army’s 62nd Infantry Battalion at Barangay Quintin Remo in Negros Occidental’s Moises Padilla town yesterday morning.

Authorities are still in the process of identifying the two slain rebels.

Meanwhile, Brigadier General Inocencio Pasaporte, 303rd Infantry Brigade commander, said the clash took place at around 7:00 a.m.

The NPA unit they encountered was believed to be the Central Negros Front 1, which was responsible for several atrocities in the town and neighboring areas.

As of press time, Pasaporte has yet to release a statement about the encounter.

It is also believed that several rebels may have also been wounded in the clash.

Recovered from the site are two M16s, an AK-47, an M14 rifle, and an M203 grenade launcher. Pursuit operations are still ongoing./DGB, WDJ