MANILA (UPDATE) — Government troops killed 10 communist rebels in a series of firefights on Monday, about a month after the two sides agreed to resume peace talks, the armed forces said.

The fighting occurred in four remote villages near the southern city of Malaybalay, a military statement said, at the start of a two-day unilateral Christmas truce declared by the Philippines' communist party and its armed wing, the New People's Army (NPA).

• AFP to remain vigilant despite 2-day ceasefire

The 8th Infantry Battalion (8IB) of the Philippine Army said Tuesday they had been receiving reports of rebel activities in the area since the first week of the month.

"We received reports na susunugin nila yung equipment ng isang construction company [on road project] diyan. This prompted us to conduct limited intelligence operations dahil nakita namin na meron na kaming significant information," said 8IB Commander Lt. Col. Anthony Bacus.

The Christmas day skirmish resulted in 10 rebel members dead, with several firearms and explosives recovered.

According to the 4th Infantry Division (4ID), the incident foiled the NPA's plans to organize activities in celebration of the CPP's founding anniversary.

"Part of the information sa amin that made us see that they are preparing for their anniversary is aside from the food and resources required from the people, meron talagang locals na ininvite nila. These locals told us," said 4ID Commander Maj. Gen. Jose Maria Cuerpo II.

Cuerpo added that the ceasefire of the NPA was not reciprocated by the government.

"Very clear sa amin ang mission, to continue our mission. To find, fix, and finish the group. The instruction is to continue our operations."

The army reported zero casualties among their troops, and ongoing operations are focused on retrieving the bodies of the dead rebels.

President Ferdinand Marcos's government and the rebels announced last month that they intend to resume peace talks next year, following a series of failed negotiations launched by previous governments since the ouster of Marcos's father, the late dictator, in 1986.

The Maoist insurgency, one of the world's longest-running, has claimed thousands of lives.

• CPP-NPA declares 2-day holiday ceasefire

The rebels had announced on Saturday that they would observe a two-day "suspension of tactical offensives" from Christmas Day to mark the insurgency's 55th founding anniversary on Tuesday.

The military had said it would not observe a Christmas ceasefire this year with the NPA, which it said has less than 2,000 members left after a high of around 26,000 guerrillas in the 1980s.

© Agence France-Presse

—With reports from Rod Bolivar