Author:
Publication: Reuters
Date: September 26, 2008
URL: http://in.reuters.com/article/topNews/idINIndia-35666320080926
Indian troops killed at least seven heavily
armed militants from a Bangladesh-based Islamist group in a gunbattle in Assam
on Friday, a military spokesman said.
India's military said the militants were from
the Harkat-ul-Jihad al Islami (HuJI) group and had sneaked into Indian territory
in Dhubri district, close to the border, from Bangladesh.
"They were to meet with another group
of HuJI which is already stationed in Guwahati planning for several blasts,"
a defence ministry statement said on Friday.
Guwahati, with a population of more than a
million people, is the biggest city in the country's remote northeast.
Ringed by China, Myanmar, Bangladesh and Bhutan,
the region is home to more than 200 tribes and has been racked by separatist
revolts since India gained independence from Britain in 1947.
Indian authorities have blamed HuJI militants
for a string of attacks in recent years, including the bombings of temples
and street markets.
Soldiers recovered seven automatic pistols,
three radio sets, and a large quantity of explosives, the ministry said.
