Kathmandu; At least nine persons, including three soldiers, a police officer and five Maoists were killed and 12 others injured in clashes between the rebels and security-forces within Nepal.
"The five Maoists were killed in an encounter during search operations carried out by the security forces in Rauthat district on Thursday," an army official said on condition of anonymity
The rebels had opened fire at a patrolling team of security forces near a village primary school, Nepal Television reported.
On the same day three soldiers and a policeman were killed and five other security personnel were injured at Ghorahi Municipality in Dang district when three bombs planted by the Maoists exploded, defence sources said.
In a separate incident, seven security personnel were injured during a clash with the Maoists at Danabari village development committee in Ilam district in eastern Nepal, sources said.
Meanwhile, Maoists had abducted 1,500 local people from various villages of Rukum district, the rebel heartland, in western Nepal. "The rebels took away one person from every household to make roads," an army-official said.
However, on Thursday, three soldiers and a police officer were killed when Maoists detonated a bomb at a security post in Ghorahi, 380 kilometres (235 miles) west of the capital, an official from army headquarters said.
Human rights groups have frequently accused the rebels of abducting people for indoctrination, to be used as human shields and to work on Maoist projects. They are usually released unharmed soon after though.
The Maoist uprising has seen some 12,500 people killed and up to 200,000 displaced.
Comments
0 comment