Troops kill 4 rebels in central Philippines

MANILA, Sept. 30 (Xinhua) -- Philippine troops killed four rebels in a clash in the central Philippine Negros Occidental province on Thursday, a military report said.

According to the report, the four New People's Army (NPA) rebels were killed in a 30-minute fighting that broke out around 2:00 a.m. local time in Manapla town.

No soldiers were wounded or killed in the clash, the report added.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte restarted the talks to end the decades-old insurgency when he came to power in 2016, but the negotiations faltered.

The NPA rebels have been fighting the Philippine government since 1969, with their attacks concentrated in rural areas. The NPA is estimated to have 3,000 members currently, significantly lower than its peak strength in the 1980s.