One alleged rebel was killed when combat troops clashed with an armed group in a brief gunfight in Lanao del Sur on April 25.
Maj. Arvin Encinas, the spokesperson of the Western Mindanao Command told TIMES that a company of the 49th Infantry Battalion sighted an enemy encampment with more or less 20 fully armed men.
The government forces established an offensive position and engaged the bandits in a 15-minute skirmish in Lumba Bayabao at 9:30 a.m.
The military recovered one enemy body, subversive documents and three high-powered firearms (one M16 rifle, one M14 rifle, and an RPG).
Maj. Gen. Generoso Ponio, Joint Task Force ZamPeLan Commander, said troops in the area are pursuing the withdrawing bandits.
“The joint task forces of this command heighten their security operations in rebel-infested communities to complement the full enforcement of the enhanced community quarantine, ” said Lt. Gen. Cirilito Sobejana, commander of Western Mindanao Command.
