Incident Summary:

10/20/2018: Assailants shot and killed nine Negros Federation of Sugar Workers (NFSW) members occupying a farm in Sagay, Negros Occidental, Philippines. No group claimed responsibility; however, sources attributed the attack to the New People's Army, which denied involvement and blamed the attack on the government.

GTD ID:
201810210006

When:
2018-10-20

Country:
Philippines

Region:
Southeast Asia

Province/administrative
region/u.s. state:

Negros Occidental

City:
Sagay district

Attack Information
Type of Attack (more) Armed Assault
Successful Attack? (more) Yes
Target Information (more)
Target Type: Business
Name of Entity Negros Federation of Sugar Workers (NFSW)
Specific Description Members
Nationality of Target Philippines
Additional Information
Hostages No
Ransom No
Property Damage No
Weapon Information
Type Sub-type
Firearms Automatic Weapon
Firearms Handgun
Weapon Details
A 5.56-mm rifle, a .38-caliber handgun, and a .45-caliber handgun were used in the attack.
Additional Information
Suicide Attack?No
Part of Multiple Incident?No
Criterion 1 (more) No
Criterion 2 (more) Yes
Criterion 3 (more) Yes
Doubt Terrorism Proper (more) Yes
Alternate Designation (more) Other Crime Type
Additional Information There is doubt that this incident meets terrorism-related criteria. Sources suspected that land disputes between farmers may have been the motive behind the attack.
Perpetrator Group Information
Group Name Claimed Responsibility
New People's Army (NPA) (suspected) No
Perpetrator Statistics
Number of Perpetrators 5
Number of Captured Perpetrators 0
Casualty Information
Total Number of Casualties 9 Fatalities / 0 Injured
Total Number of Fatalities 9
Number of U.S. Fatalities 0
Number of Perpetrator Fatalities 0
Total Number of Injured 0
Number of U.S. Injured 0
Number of Perpetrators Injured 0
Sources
"Rebel faction wants DAR to apologize," Manila Times (Philippines), November 15, 2018.
"Lorenzana says Joma Sison doing psywar tactics for blaming gov’t for Sagay massacre," Manila Bulletin, October 25, 2018.
"PNP eyes 4 groups in killing of 9 sugar farmers in Sagay," Philippines Daily Inquirer, October 23, 2018.