Rebels burn RP cell phone station

Rebels burn RP cell phone station

PHILIPPINES: Communist guerrillas torched a mobile phone relay
station south of the Philippine capital Manila in the latest of a
series of attacks on civilian targets, the military said on
Monday.

About 25 New People's Army (NPA) rebels surrounded a relay
station of the Bayan Telecommunications Co. in Camarines Sur
province on Sunday, disarmed the security guard, poured fuel on
the station and set it aflame, a military report said.

In recent weeks, the NPA have stepped up attacks on civilian
targets, destroying equipment in quarries near Manila and raiding
police stations.

Armed forces chief Gen. Benjamin Defensor had ordered tighter
security in all military camps to counter the renewed attacks,
military spokesman Brig. Gen. Eduardo Purificacion said.

The military estimates the NPA ranks at around 10,000
fighters. --AFP