The Philippine military says communist rebels have carried out two separate land mine attacks on Filipino troops and killed eight soldiers and militiamen in the south.
Regional army spokesman Lt Nasrulah Sema said about 50 New People's Army rebels detonated a land mine then opened fire today on an army truck, killing seven soldiers and militiamen in a mountainous region in Tulunan town in North Cotabato province.
At the time, the soldiers were on their way to deliver cash allowances to militiamen at a rural outpost.
Sema said a truckload of soldiers was deployed to hunt down the attackers but they were hit by another land mine and came under rebel fire in a second attack that killed a soldier and wounded four others in North Cotabato's Makilala town.
