Bomb explodes in South RP, misses passing troops

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / October 7, 2009) – Communist rebels detonated an improvised explosive Wednesday on a road in the southern Philippine province of Compostela Valley and narrowly missed a passing military vehicle, officials told the Mindanao Examiner.

Captain Emmanuel Garcia, an army spokesman, said the attack occurred at around 2.30 p.m. in the town of Monkayo. There were no reports of casualties from the attack blamed to the New People’s Army rebels.

The attack targeted the vehicle transporting soldiers belonging to the Army’s 25th Infantry Battalion.

The NPA, which is fighting for decades for the establishment of a Maoist state in the country, was previously blamed by the military and police for numerous ambuscades in the province.

“The road serves as the lifeline of the peace loving people of Monkayo whose livelihood centers are in the Diwalwal area. The recent bomb explosion along the road has put the lives of the people at great risk. This shows that the NPA is purely a terrorist organization that is sowing fear and panic among our people,” said Lieutenant Colonel Gilbert Saret, the battalion commander.

On Monday, troops seized an improvised explosive after a firefight with NPA rebels in the village of Matupi in San Fernando town in Bukidnon province. (Mindanao Examiner)