4 SAF commandos die in Rizal ambush
By Aaron B. Recuenco and Nel B. Andrade
Manila Bulletin – www.mb.com.ph
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Four members of the police's elite Special Action Force (SAF) were killed while seven others, including two civilians, were wounded in an early morning ambush Tuesday in a remote area in Baras, Rizal, police and military officials said.
Both the police and military tagged the New People's Army (NPA) as responsible for the deadly ambush, which is considered to have the biggest number of casualty in a single combat on the part of the Philippine National Police (PNP) in its antiinsurgency operation this year.
Chief Superintendent Leonardo Espina, PNP spokesman, said a team of SAF troopers from the 34th SAF Company were checking on the reported presence of armed men in a remote area near the boundary of Baras town and Antipolo City at around 6 a.m. when the incident occurred.
Espina said the SAF Defender vehicle carrying at least nine police commandos actually ran over a landmine planted by the rebels in the middle of the road in Kaysakat Road, Barangay Paenaan in Baras town. About 20 to 30 rebels, who were in ambush position, began shooting them after the landmine explosion.
“Evidence of a landmine explosion and exploded grenade were present at the scene,” said Espina.
The slain SAF commandos were identified as Police Officers 1 Rami Baddungon, Jesus Moral, Johnald Tapitan, and Clifford Bacwaden.
The wounded cops who were immediately taken to the Camp Crame Hospital were PO2 Joey Mangawit, PO1s Lito Babling, Indri Majaluddin, Ronnie Baroga, and Alvin Infanta.
“Two civilians were also reportedly wounded,” said Senior Superintendent Jonathan Miano, provincial director of the Rizal Provincial Police Office, adding that two civilians were seen in company with the ambushed cops prior to the incident.
Two SAF commandos were earlier reported to be missing but officials said they are now all accounted for. SAF commandos are highly-trained police personnel and are the ones being used in the frontline of the PNP's anti-insurgency and anti-terrorism campaign.
After the clash, the rebels reportedly took nine M16 rifles from the policemen and even burned the vehicle of the SAF troopers.
But Espina said there was undetermined number of casualties on the side of the attacking NPA fighters, what with the traces of blood in the escape routes of the rebels.
“We believe that those responsible are the dissident terrorists, the area is mountainous and the NPA is known to be operating in the area,” said Espina.
Colonel Aurelio Baladad, commander of the 202nd Brigade, said the ambush was perpetrated by at least 20 to 30 communist rebels armed with high-powered firearms.
“It's the NPA, it was a landmine ambush,” said Baladad in a phone interview.
“They want to show that they are a force to reckon with during the elections,” he added.
Both the police and the military have been accusing the NPA of raking in millions of money through Permit to Campaign (PTC) and Permit to Win (PTW) fees they allegedly demand from local and national candidates.
A lot of harassments were already attributed to the NPA across the country in the past days, all the victims were local candidates whom they would allegedly abduct, disarmed, and warned that something will happen on them if they enter NPA territory to campaign without paying PTC.
Both Espina and Baladad said pursuit operations are now being conducted against the fleeing rebels in the mountainous area of Antipolo City and nearby towns.
“We have deployed more policemen in the area, from SAF, Regional Mobile Group, Provincial Police Office and Rizal Provincial Mobile Group to hunt down the perpetrators,” said Espina.
“We will conduct pursuit operations and offensive operations in the area so that there will be elections on May 10,” said Baladad for his part.
The NPA has been waging armed conflict with the government for the past four decades, making it the longest insurgency problem in the world.
Security officials have been trying to reduce the NPA fighting force to what they termed as insignificant number as part of their objective to defeat the rebel group before President
Arroyo steps down on June 30. So far, they said the number of NPA has already been reduced to a little over 3,000 over the country from its peak of 25,000 in the 1980s.
4 cops killed, 6 hurt in Rizal ambush
By Marlon Ramos, DJ Yap
Philippine Daily Inquirer – www.inquirer.com
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
FOUR MEMBERS OF THE SPECIAL ACTION FORCE (SAF) OF THE Philippine National Police were killed while five others were wounded when suspected communist rebels detonated a land mine and then opened fire on the government troops in Baras, Rizal, Tuesday morning.
Director Leocadio Santiago, Special Action Force (SAF) commander, identified the slain policemen as Police Officers 1 Jesus Moral, Clifford Bacwaden, Johnald Tapitan and Ramil Badungon.
Wounded were Police Officers 1 Idris Madjaluddin, Ronnie Baroga, Arvin Infanta and Lito Pabliing and PO2 Joey Mangawit.
A civilian identified as Lourdes de Rosa, 39, was also hurt during the firefight.
Santiago said the wounded SAF troopers were immediately taken to the Philippine National Police Hospital in Camp Crame.
He narrated that the nine-man team from the SAF’s 3rd Special Action Battalion was on its way to the unit’s headquarters in Taguig City when they were tipped off about the presence of armed men in Sitio Kaysakat, Barangay San Jose.
A land mine suddenly exploded as the policemen, who were on a Defender truck, were searching a forested portion of the area at around 6 a.m.
“The SAF vehicle was razed by fire after it set off a land mine apparently planted by the rebels,” Rizal police chief, Senior Supt. Jonathan Ferdinand Miano, said.
He added that there were also signs of a grenade explosion in the area.
Santiago said four of the policemen were killed instantly while their colleagues were wounded when they engaged the still undetermined number of New People’s Army in a brief gunfight.
The rebels managed to seize nine M16 assault rifles before fleeing toward Baras town.
“My men were not familiar with the area. They went there after residents sought their help when they saw several armed men,” Santiago told the Inquirer on the phone.
He immediately ordered an investigation to find out if the SAF troopers committed operational lapses.
“If my men had indeed failed to observe some operational procedures, they would be dealt with accordingly,” he said.
4 SAF men killed, 5 hurt in NPA ambush
By Non Alquitran
The Philippine Star – www.philstar.com
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
MANILA, Philippines - Four members of the Special Action Force (SAF), the fighting unit of the Philippine National Police (PNP), were killed while five others were wounded in an ambush staged by communist rebels in Antipolo City, Rizal yesterday morning.
Senior Superintendent Jonathan Miano, Rizal police director, identified the slain SAF members as PO1s Rami Baddungon, Jesus Moral, Johnald Tapitan, and Clifford Bacwadin.
Those wounded were PO1s Lito Babling, Indri Majaluddin, Ronnie Baroga, and Alvin Infanta, and PO2 Joey Mangawi. They were rushed to the PNP General Hospital at Camp Crame.
Miano said the policemen belonged to the 34th Special Action Command of the 3rd SAF Battalion based in Baras, Rizal.
The SAF men were on board their “defender vehicle” on their way to their main headquarters at Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig City when they got information on the presence of armed men in Barangay San Jose.
Miano said the SAF vehicle was cruising Kaysakat Road in Sitio Kaysakat, Barangay San Jose when their vehicle hit a landmine believed planted by New People’s Army (NPA) rebels at around 6 a.m.
The guerrillas then opened fire. But SAF members who survived the first volley of gunfire shot it out for several minutes until the rebels withdrew.
Miano said joint police and Army units responded to the scene but the NPA attackers had long been gone when they arrived.
Police recovered fragments of a landmine and grenades at the ambush site.
Miano said tracks left by the NPA rebels showed that they had been in the area since Monday night apparently waiting for their targets.
Miano said they were conducting hot pursuit operations against the retreating guerrillas. – With Arnell Ozaeta and Cecille Suerte Felipe
Four policemen killed, seven injured in NPA ambush
The Manila Times – www.manilatimes.net
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Four troopers of the Philippine National Police Special Action Force were killed after a landmine planted by New People’s Army (NPA) exploded in Sitio Kaysakat, Barangay San Jose, Baras, Rizal, at 5:30 a.m. Tuesday.
Provincial Director Sr. Supt. Jonathan Miano of Rizal said the fatalities were Police Officer 1 Rami Baddungon, Police Officer 1 Jesus Moral, Police Officer 1 Johnald Tapitan and Police Officer 1 Clifford Bacwaden. Those wounded were Police Officer 1 Lito Babling, Police Officer 2 Joey Mangawit, Police Officer 1 Indri Majaluddin, Police Officer 1 Ronnie Baroga and Police Officer 1 Alvin Infanta, who are are being treated at Camp Crame General Hospital.
The well-planned ambush, according to the military, was a show of force before next month’s national elections.
The NPA guerrillas threw grenades at the police vehicle carrying the nine police commandos and two civilians after it ran over a landmine along an isolated road, local police chief Jonathan Miano said.
“The vehicle was completely razed,” said Miano. He said four of the policemen were killed immediately.
Local military commander Col. Aurelio Baladad said it was likely the ambush was intended to intimidate people ahead of the May 10 elections.
“They [the communists] want to show that they are a force to be reckoned with during the elections,” he said.
The NPA is the armed wing of the underground Communist Party of the Philippines, which has been waging a Maoist rebellion since 1969.
The military said recently the NPA’s strength had fallen from a peak of more than 26,000 in 1987 to below 5,000 currently.
However, they remain a potent force and the communist insurgency has claimed more than 3,000 lives over the past decade, according to the military.
The rebels are also well known to go on fundraising drives during election periods by charging candidates for “permits” to campaign in rebel-infested areas.
The military said last month the communists were set to rake in millions of dollars from such extortion tactics ahead of the elections.
Candidates are being asked to pay anywhere between P5,000 and P20 million ($110 and $435,000) or their campaigners will be attacked, the military said.
The guerrillas are well known to use deadly enforcement measures.
Communist rebels killed three soldiers who were trying to stop NPA members collect money from political campaigners in the southern city of Davao early this month, according to the military.
President Gloria Arroyo had vowed to neutralize the communist insurgent movement before her term ends in June of this year.
But while government forces have cleared several regions of insurgents during her 10 years in power, the rebels remain active in the hinterlands and maintain grassroot support.
In one controversial move to tackle the communists, the military in February arrested 43 health workers attending a medical seminar, charging they were undergoing NPA training.
Church and human rights groups have criticized the military for continuing to hold them without putting them on trial.
AFP and Roselle Aquino
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