MANILA, July 2 (Xinhua) -- Two New People's Army (NPA) rebels have been killed in a clash in Lupi, a town in Camarines Sur province of the Philippines, a spokesman for the Philippine army said on Tuesday.
Maj. Ricky Aguilar said troops went to San Vicente village around 12:30 p.m. on Monday after villagers reported the presence of some 15 NPA rebels, ensuing a gunfight that lasted 30 minutes.
No troop was hurt in the clash, he added.
Aguilar said the rebels fled after the firefight. Troops recovered six M16 assault rifles, one M653 rifle, one improvised bomb, and documents from the encounter site, he said.
The NPA rebels have been fighting the government since 1969.
They primarily target Philippine security forces, government officials, local infrastructure, and businesses that refuse to pay extortion, or "revolutionary taxes."
The NPA guerrillas, one of Asia's longest-running insurgencies, concentrates its attacks in rural areas and small-scale skirmishes with the military.
