India boasts final drive against Naxal insurgency

NaxalsIndia's government claims to have killed a top Naxalite rebel leader as part of a month-long military operation targeting the Maoist guerillas. Nambala Keshav Rao AKA "Basavaraju," secretary-general of the banned Communist Party of India–Maoist (CPI-M), was killed alongside 25 other insurgent fighters in a shoot-out in Narayanpur district, Chhattisgarh state. The Naxalites have waged an armed struggle for more than two generations in the impoverished interior regions of East and Central India, but New Delhi has now vowed to clear the country of the rebel movement by March 2026. (Photo via MIM)

India: security forces launch new anti-Naxal ops

NaxaliteIndian security forces killed at least 29 Naxal insurgents in Kanker Bastar district of Chhattisgarh state this month. The Indian Border Security Force (BSF) and District Reserve Guard (DRG) carried out the joint operation in what the BSF called "a major crackdown against the Maoist menace." Among those reported killed was a top Naxal commander, Shankar Rao. A large cache of weapons was also reported to have been seized in the operation. Chhattisgarh is one of several states, mostly in east-central India, officially designated as affected by Left-Wing Extremism (LWE). (Map: Wikipedia)

South Asia

Nepalese Maoists betray Indian Maoists

Nepalese Maoist leader Prachanda sent a condolence letter to Sonia Gandhi over the attack by Maoist Naxalite guerillas in which 27 were killed, including a brutal paramilitary chief.