ZAMBOANGA CITY – Suspected communist rebels killed a government soldier – who just returned home after fighting local IS-inspired militants for five months in Marawi City – in a daring attack before dawn Tuesday in Pagadian City in the southern Filipino province of Zamboanga del Sur. AdvertisementsPolice said Corporal Rhuphel Lihay-lihay was fatally shot while in the middle of a billiard game in Santa Maria village. Lihay-lihay was a member of the army’s 1st Infantry Division based in the province and recently arrived home from war. No individual claimed responsibility for the attack, but suspicion fell heavily on the New People’s Army rebels who were actively operating in the Zamboanga Peninsula. The NPA has been fighting for many decades now for the establishment of a communist state in the Philippines.

Source: Manila Times October 24, 2017 12:11 UTC