At least 12 Maoist rebels killed by Indian security forces | Military Affairs

About 3,000 officers are involved in the operation in the state of Chhattisgarh, which is the heartland of the armed insurgents.

At least 12 Maoist rebels have been killed by Indian security forces as New Delhi steps up efforts to end the long-running insurgency.

Police said on Friday that the operation broke out on Thursday in the forested areas of Bijapur district in Chhattisgarh state, known as the hotbed of insurgency.

“We have received information about the killing of 12 Maoists during an encounter with the security forces,” police chief Sundarraj P told AFP. Indian media outlet Hindustan Times put the death toll at 17, adding that at least 3,000 police had been involved in the operation since Wednesday night.

Last week, police in Chhattisgarh’s Sukma district also killed at least three Maoist rebels, including an explosives expert who reportedly killed dozens of security guards, according to the Indian Express.

Last year, India’s Home Minister Amit Shah said the government expected to end the insurgency by 2026.

Security forces’ attacks killed more than 200 rebels last year, the highest number in Chhattisgarh, according to government data.

More than 10,000 people have died in this rebellion, where the rebels claim to be fighting for the rights of the neglected people, the Aborigines.

The conflict has seen several attacks on government forces over the years.

Earlier this month, a roadside bomb killed at least nine Indian soldiers. A week later, Indian troops killed at least five militants and a bomb blast wounded two policemen.

In 2021, 22 police and military personnel were killed in a shootout with far-left rebels.

In 2019, at least 16 commandos were killed in the western state of Maharashtra in a bomb attack blamed on Maoists ahead of the general elections.