1,500 Reds, 11 weakened guerrilla fronts left – AFP

MANILA, Philippines — Only “a little over” 1,500 New People’s Army (NPA) rebels remain nationwide, according to the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

AFP chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. said the NPA rebels belong to the remaining 11 “weakened” guerrilla fronts.

“We will try to do that,” Brawner told reporters after the first command conference with President Marcos at Camp Aguinaldo on Monday when asked if the communist insurgents can be defeated this year.

Brawner noted that the number of NPA rebels reached around 25,000 in the late 1980s to early 1990s.

In its yearend report, the AFP said there is no more active NPA guerrilla front. The weakened guerrilla fronts are down to 13, it added.

Brawner said the enemy is now at its ”weakest,” but there are smaller NPA groups or remnants that need to be dealt with.

“There are still NPA formations out there. What they are trying to do now is recover the areas that they have lost, their supporters, the communities that supported their cause... They are trying to regain that,” he said.

Brawner said a new set of targets was given to military commanders to be able to defeat communist terrorist groups.

“They are still there... They are still a force to reckon with. That is why we gave the targets to our commanders to end this,” he said.

“By doing that, we will be able to shift now to territorial defense. That is why it is important that we end this problem with communist terrorist groups,” Brawner added.

He also stressed the need to defeat terrorist groups such as the Dawlah Islamiya, Abu Sayyaf and Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters.

As this developed, soldiers seized an NPA camp following an encounter with remnants of the dismantled Northern Negros Front or the Roselyn Jean Pelle Command in Sitio Martesan, Barangay Cambayobo in Calatrava, Negros Occidental on Monday.

A .30-caliber M1 Garand, a carbine rifle with two magazines and bullets, a .38-caliber revolver, two rifle grenades, a handheld radio, two cellular phones, assorted food and medicine were recovered at the scene, Lt. Col. Arnel Calaoagan, 79th Infantry Brigade commander, said.

In Bataan, Zambales and Tarlac, three NPA rebels surrendered and turned over a