22 Indian security members killed in Maoist attack – government official

(Reuters) – At least 22 members of Indian security forces were killed in a central Indian state by Maoist fighters in one of the bloodiest attacks by the far-left rebel group this year, officials said on Sunday.

Security personnel belonging to the elite CoBRA unit of the Central Reserve Police Force, the District Reserve Guard and the Special Task Force were attacked on Saturday in the tribal-dominated state of Chhattisgarh during an anti-insurgency operation.

“We can confirm that 22 members of the Indian force were killed by Maoist fighters,” said a senior government official in Raipur, the mineral-rich capital of Chhattisgarh.

They were killed in four-hour shots in the border district of Sukma, 540 kilometers (340 miles) south of Raipur.

Om Prakash Pal, a senior police officer in Raipur, said that sweeping operations to track down a missing member of the security force were being conducted.

The death toll has been the heaviest for Indian security forces fighting the far-left guerrillas since 2017.

Interior Minister Amit Shah said the government will not tolerate such bloodshed and “an adequate response will be given to prevent these attacks”.

Maoists, also known as Naxals, have been carrying out an armed insurgency against the government for decades. Leaders of the hard-line left-wing militant group say they are fighting for the poorest, who have not benefited from a long economic boom in Asia’s third largest economy.

Since 1967, the group seen as the biggest threat to the country’s internal security, has taken control of vast tracts of land in central and eastern India, establishing the so-called “red corridor”.

The militant group operates in dense forests and its operations against Indian administration and forces are shrouded in secrecy. The group did not take responsibility for the latest attack.

Hours after the attack, Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote on Twitter that “the sacrifices of the brave martyrs will never be forgotten. May the wounded recover as quickly as possible. “

Last month, five policemen were killed and several others were injured in an explosion in what the police said was a Maoist attack on a bus carrying more than 20 security guards.