Manila:Three soldiers were killed and 14 others wounded in a communist guerrilla ambush in the southern Philippines early today, a military spokesman said.

The soldiers were pinned down in a minefield near a New People s Army (NPA) training camp near the town of Lingig on Mindanao island, regional military spokesman Major Armand Rico told reporters.

The soldiers had attacked the camp before dawn and dislodged about 80 rebels from the site after a three-hour firefight, Rico said.

The tables were turned on the pursuers when the insurgents detonated improvised landmines laid to cover their retreat, he added.

Rico said civilian witnesses saw a number of rebel casualties during the retreat, but no enemy casualties were recovered by the authorities.

The NPA is the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines, which has been waging a Maoist insurgency for 39 years.
Source : PTI