1 killed in suspected Philippine rebel attack

Suspected Philippine rebels kill at least 1 in attack on Del Monte pineapple plantation

MANILA, Philippines (AP) -- A Philippine army official says dozens of suspected communist rebels have attacked a community in a Del Monte pineapple plantation complex in the country's south, killing at least one guard.

Army Lt. Col. Eugenio Osias says the New People's Army guerrillas barged into the vast plantation belonging to Del Monte Philippines Inc. late Tuesday in Manolo Fortich town in Bukidnon province, ransacking offices and seizing firearms from several plantation guards.

Osias says the attackers later withdrew and are being pursued by government troops.

He says troops and police are checking the extent of the damage in the plantation community and whether the attackers took workers hostage as they withdrew.

The Marxist rebellion, one of Asia's longest, has been raging for 43 years.