There was trouble in the Philippines as rebel communists raided 3 mining companies disarming the guards and taking managerial employees hostage briefly.
Members of the New People’s Army also ambushed a convoy being led by a police general responding to the initial attacks.
The attacks took place in the Surigao del Norte province in a remote town called Claver. The attack is considered the most offensive that the guerrilla rebels have conducted this year. Regional police Chief Reynaldo Rafal said the rebels, armed with automatic rifles and grenades hit the Taganito Mining Corp. first.
Operations at the Taganito Mining Corp. were halted due to the attack and several employees were taken in a van to a different area of the company compound. There the rebels burnt several trucks, a barge and a guesthouse.
Taganito Mining Corp. is owned by Nickel Asia Corp., the largest producer of nickel in the Phillippines. The company is owned in part by the Japanese Sumitomo Corp. The Tokyo based firm has invested $1.3 billion in the mine. The close by Platinum Group Metals and the THPAL mineral processing plant were also attacked by a separate group of rebels.
Presidential Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. said all foreign nationals at the work sites were safe and Filipino employees were now out of harm’s way. He added that this incident was an isolated case and the business community and the public can be assured that the government was on top of the situation.