Indian army claims to have killed 48 ULFA guerrillas
IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency
Guwahati, India, April 14, IRNA
India-Assam-ULFA Killed
The Indian army Saturday claimed to have killed 48 guerrillas of a dominant separatist group in the restive northeastern state since a massive military crackdown September, besides choking their supplies and communication network.
An army commander said the operations were targeted against militants of the outlawed United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA), a rebel group fighting for an independent Assamese homeland since 1979.
"The ULFA have suffered heavy casualties in the ongoing operations losing 48 rebels in separate encounters since September with as many as 14 of them gunned down in the past two weeks alone," army spokesman Lt Col Narender Singh said.
The military operations began September 24 after New Delhi called off a six-week ceasefire with the ULFA blaming the group for stepping up violence and extortions.
In continuing raids by soldiers of a mountain division based in eastern Assam since the offensive began, 64 ULFA rebels were apprehended and 32 more surrendered before authorities.
The ULFA is blamed for a string of bombings and attacks in January killing about 80 people, 61 of them being Hindi-speaking migrant workers.
The army claims the stepped up offensive and vigil have choked the supply routes of the ULFA with the rebels under pressure.
"The supply lines of the ULFA for carrying rations, medicines, and weapons have been literally blocked with continuous patrol and pressure mounted on the outfit," the army commander said.
The army also claimed to have cracked the ULFA's communication signals by using sophisticated jamming devices.
"The ULFA is on the run and their backbone is almost broken with continuous pressure from our troops. We have broken their
communication signals with the ULFA in total disarray now," Singh said.
Intelligence reports earlier said the ULFA had shifted its base from Assam to the jungles in adjoining Arunachal Pradesh, while many have sneaked into camps located in neighbouring Myanmar after the army offensive.
"Even the Myanmarese junta have stepped up the heat against the ULFA by launching a crackdown in selected areas," an intelligence official said requesting not to be named.
On Tuesday, eight ULFA rebels, including two women guerrilla fighters, were killed in a raid inside a densely forested area in Arunachal Pradesh.
The ULFA in a statement Wednesday said there cannot be a military solution to the conflict.
"Only a political dialogue can resolve the problem," ULFA chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa said.
The ULFA last month rejected Assam government's offer for unconditional talks and warned of stepped up violence, including using human bombs to attack selected targets.
Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi had offered unconditional peace talks with the ULFA, aimed at ending close to three decades of insurgency in the region.
The ULFA said direct talks could be possible only if New Delhi agrees to discuss their core demand of sovereignty or independence, and release five of their jailed leaders.
More than 10,000 people have lost their lives to insurgency in Assam during the past two decades.
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