MANILA, Philippines - Two Army soldiers were hurt after stepping on a landmine believed to have been planted by New People's Army (NPA) rebels in Compostela Valley province over the weekend, a regional military spokesman said Monday.
About 11 a.m. Sunday, troops from the Army's 1001st Brigade were on patrol mission when the two soldiers tripped on the explosive in New Leyte village in Maco town., said Maj. Armand Rico, of the Armed Forces Eastern Mindanao Command.
Rico identified the wounded soldiers as Pfc. Naser Usman and Pfc. Glenn Durias.
The use of landmine is banned by the United Nations under the 1997 Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction.
"That is what we are looking at," Rico said.
Already, Rico said explosives experts have been deployed to verify if other landmines have been planted in the area.
Also on Sunday, the same troops engaged 20 insurgents in a 20-minute firefight in Paloc village in Maragusan town, also in Compostela Valley. It could not be ascertained whether the rebels were the ones who planted the landmine in Maco town.
No casualties were reported on both sides, Rico said. - GMANews.TV