BACOLOD CITY, Negros Occidental, Philippines – Gunfire and explosions were heard in the mountains of Himamaylan City, 60 kilometers south from here, as rebels and soldiers clashed since 3am today, 6 October 2022.
The city police confirmed one rebel was found dead.
As this goes to press, Army Brigadier General Innocencio Pasaporte confirmed another firefight is ongoing in Carabalan, the mountain barangay where 17 soldiers were killed in a rebel ambush in 2022.
A DNX source said residents reported hearing what sounded like grenades exploding and automatic rifle fire since 3am in the morning until around 6am today, 6 October 2022.
The running gunbattle started as a raid by 94th Battalion soldiers, acting on tips from locals, on a bivouac of the New People’s Army in the sitio or sub village of Sig-ang and quickly turned into a defensive action by the rebels around 3am.
After three hours, the guerrillas fled the bivouac, leading to running gunbattles with Army troopers through several sitios, the sources added.