Fresh fighting erupts in Philippine south, 4 killed

MANILA, Aug 26 (Reuters) A Philippine soldier and three communist rebels were killed in fresh fighting on the troubled southern island of Mindanao, an army spokesman said today.

Lieutenant-Colonel Bartolome Bacarro said heavy fighting erupted on Friday when about 30 rebels ambushed an army convoy, detonating land mines and firing with automatic rifles at soldiers in Agusan del Sur province.

''Our troops fought back and chased them when reinforcements rushed to the area,'' Bacarro told reporters, adding a soldier was killed in the blast and three rebels were killed in the battle.

''We're pouring more troops to prevent more rebel raids and ambushes. We're not allowing them to seize the initiative. We knew their plans to step up an offensive and make their presence felt in the countryside.'' Cesar Renerio, a spokesman for the communist New People's Army (NPA) rebels, claimed five soldiers were killed in the ambush set up to seize weapons from government troops returning to an army base.

Renerio said the rebels were stepping up attacks on military convoys and bases to acquire more weapons and ammunition, refuting government statements that it was winning the war and could defeat the insurgency in two years.

On Wednesday, rebels killed one soldier and seized 29 assault rifles with ammunition in a raid on an army outpost in nearby Bukidnon province.

The NPA, fighting one of the world's oldest communist insurgencies, often attacks remote military and police facilities to steal weapons and ammunition.

The Philippines, Washington's closest security partner in Southeast Asia, estimates NPA membership at around 7,000, down from a peak of more than 25,000 in the mid-1980s.

Fuelled by widespread poverty and a sense of injustice, especially in rural areas, the NPA has been waging a violent, hit-and-run insurgency since the late 1960s and is active in 69 of the country's 79 provinces.

At least 40,000 people have been killed in the conflict.

Peace talks with the communists, brokered by Norway, stalled in 2004 when Manila refused to persuade the United States and some European states to remove the NPA from terror blacklists.

REUTERS MQA RN0923