Two soldiers were injured in a clash with communist rebels in a southern Philippine province, an army spokesman said Saturday. Lieutenant Colonel Franklin del Prado said the soldiers were injured Friday in a landmine explosion during a clash with the rebels in Comlumbio town in Sultan Kudarat province, 990 kilometres south of Manila. "The improvised landmine exploded as our troops were attacking communist rebels in the area," he said. "Unfortunately two of our soldiers were injured." Del Prado said the government troops eventually overran an enemy encampment and recovered another unexploded landmine, a hand grenade, a cellular phone and electrical wiring left behind by the fleeing rebels. Fighting between communist rebels and government troops have escalated since the guerrillas cancelled a round of peace negotiations in August last year. The rebels said they will only resume negotiations once they are removed from the list of foreign terrorist organizations of the United States, the European Union, Canada and New Zealand. Communist rebels have been fighting the government since the late 1960s, making the movement one of the longest-running leftist insurgencies in Asia.
