ZAMBOANGA CITY: Hundreds of families, mostly tribesmen, fled Davao del Norte as government troops launched an offensive against the New People’s Army (NPA), human rights groups said on Tuesday.

Tribesmen and villagers left the town of Talaingod for fear of being caught in the crossfire, arrested or branded as rebels or supporters of the rebel group which has been waging a secessionist war for many decades.

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