Two communist rebels were killed Sunday in a clash with government troops in the northern Philippines, a military spokesman said. One soldier was also wounded in the firefight in Santa Lucia town, in the northern province of Ilocos Sur, said Lieutenant Colonel Buenaventura Pascual, according to DPA. The troops were on patrol when they encountered a group of 15 communist rebels in the village of Pila East at dawn. Troops recovered two rifles from the two slain guerrillas, Pascual said. Communist rebels have been fighting the Philippine government since the late 1960s, making the movement one of the longest running leftist insurgencies in Asia. -SPA 2102 Local Time 1802 GMT
