`3 Lumad slain in Surigao are NPA'

The government on Tuesday insisted three members of the Manobo tribe killed in an alleged firefight with the military in Surigao del Sur were members of New People's Army (NPA), dismissing the claim of child rights group Save Our School (SOS) Network they were mere "farmers."

During the recent virtual press conference of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-Elcac), Lt. Col. Benedict Gernale, army operation commander, confirmed the fatalities were armed combatants of the NPA, contrary to the SOS Network's "fabricated lies."