ASIDE FROM intensified clashes on the ground, the military and the rebels here have been fighting over the number of soldiers killed by rebel attacks during the last week of 2017. The military, through Maj. Gen. Noel Clement, commander of the 10th Infantry Division, denied the rebels’ claim that 26 soldiers were killed during a series of encounters in the Davao Region just a week before new year. He said the military “does not hide its casualties and always states facts based on results of the encounters.” “That is purely a propaganda statement to project an imagined strength of this terrorist organization,” he added as his rebuttal to Rigoberto Sanchez, spokesperson of the New People’s Army (NPA) in Southern Mindanao. Mr. Sanchez claimed the soldiers were killed during the defensive tactical operations of the rebels while both were implementing their respective cease-fire. “The tactical offensives against the rabid reactionary armed forces serve to underscore the growing demand to overthrow Rodrigo Duterte from power” said Mr. Sanchez. He identified the encounter sites as those in the areas of Davao Oriental and Compostela Valley. — Carmelito Q. Francisco

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