Philippine president calls off truce after rebel attack

Duterte, however, has agreed to the release of detained rebels, who would be involved in peace talks, and designated two allies of the guerrillas to Cabinet posts in concessions aimed at fostering the talks.

“Let me now announce that I am hereby ordering for the immediate lifting of the unilateral ceasefire that I ordered last July 25 against the communist rebels”, Duterte’s statement read.

Duterte on Friday gave the CPP-NDF an ultimatum to also declare a truce after a rebel attack on militiamen on Wednesday, two days following the Chief Executive’s pronouncement of a unilateral ceasefire.

“If I don’t get the word from you, then I will lift the order of ceasefire”, the president said, adding he was rejecting rebel demands for him to withdraw government troops and policemen from certain rural areas.

Rebel leader calls president “volatile” after the revoking of a unilateral ceasefire declaration issued on Monday.

The president put all security forces on high alert, and told them to continue their mandate to neutralize all threats to national security.

The President withdrew the truce declaration after the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF) failed to meet his ultimatum for the rebels to reciprocate the truce until 5:00 p.m. local time Saturday.

The AFP, in a statement released through Spokesperson Brigadier General Restituto Padilla, said “the NPA have missed a golden opportunity to manifest their commitment to the attainment of our citizen’s much sought peace throughout the land”.

“As things now stand, the AFP will abide by the ensuing orders of the Commander-in-Chief President Rodrigo Duterte following this development”, AFP chief-of-staff Gen. Ricardo Visaya said.

“The NPA and the people’s militia are ready to defend itself from enemy troops who are actively present in nearly all villages in Southern Mindanao”.

The CPP accused government troops of violating the President’s ceasefire orders and said that the CAFGU units took off from their detachment in Sitio Patil, Barangay Gupitan on July 26 for a “combat operation”.

“Who is saying it is not pushing through? So we’re pushing through with this as originally scheduled”, Dureza said in a radio interview.

It urged both parties “to earnestly go back to the negotiating table and forge a political settlement that will pave the way for permanent cessation of hostilities and finally bring about a just and lasting peace”.

“I have not found any indication at all that the AFP is sabotaging it”, he said.

On Friday, Luis Jalandoni, the chief rebel negotiator, had said that the rebels would declare a truce “very soon”.

The announcement came an hour before the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) Central Committee would have issued its own declaration of reciprocal ceasefire.