MANILA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- A soldier has been killed and 11 others wounded in fresh clash between the government troops and rebels in the southern Philippines, the military said on Sunday.
In a report, the military said firefight broke out around 10:30 p.m. Saturday local time in Kitaotao town in Bukidnon, a landlocked province in the northern Mindanao region, when an undetermined numbers of rebels ambushed soldiers on patrol in the area.
The military said the soldiers are on board a military car when rebels exploded an improvised explosive device and started firing at them.
The government has decided to suspend talks with the rebels after a series of rebel attacks against government troops and private companies who refused to give them cash.
Before and after the government's decision to suspend the talks, rebels continued their offensive against the military and police, and extortion activities victimizing small entrepreneurs and companies in the provinces.
More attacks are expected in the coming weeks as both sides intensify their offensive against each other.
