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| Soldiers of the Philippines Armed Forces |
MANILA, Feb. 3 (Xinhua) -- The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) vowed Friday to go after the leftist rebels who are engaged in criminal activities following President Rodrigo Duterte's decision to lift the unilateral ceasefire with them.
"We will go after the NPA (New People's Army) to prevent them from conducting atrocities and criminal activities against the public. And we will hit them hard," said AFP chief of staff Eduardo Ano in a text message to reporters.
He said the military welcomed the president's pronouncement of lifting the truce because "AFP has to do its mandate of protecting the people, securing the community and taking care of our own soldiers too."
"It is unfortunate that the gains of the last six months would come to a halt because the CPP-NPA again resorted to the use of violence and chose arms to advance their interests," Ano said.
Read the full story at Xinhua