(dpa) - Two communist rebels were killed in clashes with government troops in the Philippines at the weekend, an army spokesman said Monday.
One guerrilla was killed Sunday in a firefight with soldiers on the outskirts of Sorsogon City, 375 kilometres south-east of Manila, Lieutenant Colonel Ernesto Torres said.
The slain rebel was identified as Jonis Manrique, a team leader of a communist rebel unit in the village of Abuyog, Torres said.
In the northern province of Tarlac, another guerrilla was killed Sunday when a band of 15 rebels encountered army troopers on combat patrol in the town of Mayantoc, he said.
Torres said the slain rebel had yet to be identified but troops recovered an M-16 rifle, assorted ammunition and subversive documents after the firefight.
Communist rebels have been fighting the Philippine government since the late 1960s, making the movement one of the longest-running leftist insurgencies in Asia.