Five army soldiers were killed while another one was wounded when suspected communist rebels opened fire at them in Mountain Province in northern Philippines Wednesday, a regional military commander said Thursday. In a text message to reporters Thursday, Col. Remegio de Vera, commanding officer of the 501st Infantry Brigade, said troops belonging to the 54th Infantry Battalion were ambushed by about 20 New People's Army (NPA) rebels at the vicinity of Mt. Bato in Mainit village in Bontoc town past 10 A.M. Wednesday. De Vera identified the fatalities as Privates First Class Camilo Abad, Casem Joseph, Napoleon Ramirez, Joey Corpus and Velasco Mayao. The wounded soldier was identified as Private Salvador Villanueva.
