Five Philippine Soldiers Die in Truck Ambush
Gunmen believed to be Communist guerrillas ambushed a military truck Friday and killed five soldiers traveling in advance of a local mayor campaigning for President Ferdinand E. Marcos, a military official said.
Col. Francisco Agudon, Philippine Constabulary provincial commander, said some of the nine soldiers on the truck returned fire, killing two attackers. Reinforcements were sent and a battle ensued, but it was not known if there were additional casualties, he said.
The ambush occurred on Negros Island outside Silay, 19 miles from Bacolod and 280 miles southeast of Manila.
Agudon said 40 to 50 guerrillas waited in foxholes on the roadside and attacked the soldiers on their way to a village where Silay Mayor Natalio Velez was to hold a campaign rally for Marcos.
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