MANILA — Eleven soldiers were killed and several others were wounded Saturday in a firefight with Communist guerrillas in a province south of Manila, Philippine Army officials said.
The battle in Oriental Mindoro Province was the deadliest encounter the military has had with the insurgency so far this year.
Army officials said a platoon of soldiers patrolling the remote areas of Oriental Mindoro had inadvertently entered a rebel camp. “The two sides exchanged fire a few meters apart,” said Lt. Col. Noel Detoyato, an army spokesman. He said that the firefight lasted for three hours, “literally to the last bullet,” and that the rebels withdrew only after military reinforcements arrived.
Colonel Detoyato said seven soldiers were wounded in the fighting, while the rebels, who numbered around 60, also suffered casualties.
Col. Romeo Brawner, another army spokesman in Manila, said Saturday that the soldiers had been on patrol as part of security preparations for elections in May. He said the Communists had been extorting money from politicians who ventured into rebel areas to campaign.
According to officials, at least eleven solders in the Philippines were killed and several others injured on Saturday after a gunfight with Communist rebels in Mindoro, a province south of the capital Manila. It was the deadliest incident between the two since the start of the year.

Army officials commented that a platoon of Filipino soldiers accidentally entered the grounds of the New People's Army (NPA) rebel camp.

"The two sides exchanged fire a few meters apart," remarked army spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Noel Detoyato. "... The troops fought it out literally to the last bullet." He commented that the gunfight lasted for about three hours, that about sixty NPA rebels were involved in the clash, and that seven of the Filipino troops were injured.

Another army spokesman, Colonel Romeo Brawner, noted that the troops were in the vicinity as part of security measures implemented for the elections in May, so that the candidates would be able to safely campaign.