02-17-2005, 10:32 PM
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Militants kill 5 armymen in Manipur </b>
Agencies/ Imphal
At least five paramilitary troopers, <b>including a captain</b>, were killed and another seriously injured in an ambush by separatist guerrillas in Manipur.
A defence spokesman said armed militants of the outlawed <b>Kanglei Yawol Kanna Lup (KYKL)</b> late Wednesday attacked a convoy of the Assam Rifles near village Kumbi, 45 km south of Imphal.
"The militants opened random fire on the security convoy killing five Assam Rifles personnel and critically injuring another," defence spokesman Major Santanu Dev Goswami said on Thursday.
The soldiers, engaged in counter-insurgency operations, were on a routine patrol when the rebels ambushed them from a hillock.
The KYKL is a rebel group fighting for an independent homeland for the predominantly Hindu Meitei community in Manipur.
"This is one of the major attacks on security forces by militants in the region in recent months," Goswami said.
There are more than 19 militant groups active in Manipur with demands ranging from independence to autonomy and the right to self-determination <!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Agencies/ Imphal
At least five paramilitary troopers, <b>including a captain</b>, were killed and another seriously injured in an ambush by separatist guerrillas in Manipur.
A defence spokesman said armed militants of the outlawed <b>Kanglei Yawol Kanna Lup (KYKL)</b> late Wednesday attacked a convoy of the Assam Rifles near village Kumbi, 45 km south of Imphal.
"The militants opened random fire on the security convoy killing five Assam Rifles personnel and critically injuring another," defence spokesman Major Santanu Dev Goswami said on Thursday.
The soldiers, engaged in counter-insurgency operations, were on a routine patrol when the rebels ambushed them from a hillock.
The KYKL is a rebel group fighting for an independent homeland for the predominantly Hindu Meitei community in Manipur.
"This is one of the major attacks on security forces by militants in the region in recent months," Goswami said.
There are more than 19 militant groups active in Manipur with demands ranging from independence to autonomy and the right to self-determination <!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->