Three suspected rebels have been killed in a clash with Philippine security forces in Sultan Kudarat province in southern Philippines, the military said on Saturday.
The military said in a report that a 30-minute clash broke out around 8:30 p.m. local time on Friday when government forces ran into some 25 New People's Army insurgents in a village near Senator Ninoy Aquino town in Sultan Kudarat province.
The clash resulted in the killing of three NPA rebels, the military said, adding that the rest of the rebels fled.
Troops recovered a 45-caliber handgun, a handheld radio, five sacks of rice and a medical kit from the clash site, the military said.
Immediately, the military said it launched offensive operations to hunt down the fleeing rebels.
The NPA strength is estimated at 3,500, a number significantly lower than its peak strength of around 25,000 in the 1980s.