Six policemen were wounded today and two others went missing after an ambush by communist rebels, who also attacked a gold mining company in the eastern Philippines, officials said. According to dpa, more than 60 guerrillas swooped down on the compound of the Filminera Resources Corp in Aroroy town in Masbate province, 360 kilometres south-east of Manila, before dawn. They disarmed the guards and set on fire the company's office and heavy equipment, Lieutenant Colonel Rhoderick Parayno, a regional military spokesman, said. Parayno said the rebels then ambushed a group of policemen dispatched to respond to the attack in Filminera. "Six members of the police special action forces group were wounded and two are missing," he said. "Army troops are proceeding to the area to reinforce the policemen." Just an hour before the attack on the mining firm, policemen also clashed with communist rebels in nearby Baleno town. No casualties were reported. Parayno said police recovered three M-16 rifles, one M-79 grenade launcher, assorted ammunition and subversive documents left behind by the fleeing rebels. 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
