ISTANBUL

Nine security forces including a driver were killed on Monday in an attack carried out by Maoist rebels, also known as Naxals, in central India, officials said.

The Naxalites detonated an IED, blowing up a police vehicle in Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh state.

The insurgent group that draws inspiration from far-left radical communists who support the Maoist political ideology, has been fighting against the government in eastern and central India since 1967 for what it describes as rights of tribal people.

Chhattisgarh's chief minister, Vishnu Deo Sa, condemned the blast and condoled with the families of the victims. “Naxalites are frustrated with the ongoing Naxal eradication campaign in Bastar and are perpetrating such cowardly acts out of frustration. The martyrdom of the soldiers will not go in vain, our fight to end Naxalism will continue strongly,” he said on X.

It is said to be the biggest strike on security personnel by Naxalites in the last two years. On April 26, 2023, 10 police personnel and a civilian driver were killed after rebels blew up their vehicle, which was part of a convoy carrying security personnel in the neighboring Dantewada district.

Some 287 Naxal rebels were killed in 2024, according to government figures.

India’s Home Minister Amit Shah also expressed sadness, saying the soldiers’ sacrifice “will not go in vain.” He said the insurgency will be quashed by March 2026.