MANILA, Philippines -- Four suspected communist guerillas were killed following an encounter with government troops in the northern province of Isabela on Tuesday morning, military officials said.

The firefight, which started at around 9:40 a.m., was reported in Mabbayad village, Echague town, said Major General Melchor Dilodilo, chief of the 5th Infantry Division based in the same province.

The remains of the four New People's Army (NPA) rebels were recovered along with three M16 rifles and two M14 rifles, Dilodilo said in a text message.

First Lieutenant Dennis Guillermo, spokesman of the Army’s 5th Infantry Division, confirmed the encounter in a report by the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

Guillermo said soldiers belonging to the 52nd Reconnaissance Company met at least 30 rebels while patrolling Barangay Mabbayad.

The rebels belonged to the NPA’s southern front operating in Isabela, Guillermo said.

Guillermo said no government soldier was wounded in the hour-long firefight.

The 6,300-strong NPA, the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), has been waging a guerilla campaign from the countryside for nearly four decades.