WorldIn today's News Mahela and Sanga named as EU envoys for women's rightsBHUBANESHWAR, REUTERS -Indian police killed at least 24 Maoist rebels in a remote, forested area of the eastern state of Odisha on Monday, police said, one of the heaviest casualty tolls suffered by the insurgents in recent years. The rebels accuse the Indian state of plundering the mineral-rich and underdeveloped east and central regions of the country at the expense of the poor and landless, among whom they retain some support. The security forces seized automatic rifles and ammunition from the area, a stronghold of the insurgents, police said. According to the South Asia Terrorism Portal, 337 people have been killed in left-wing extremist violence so far this year, more than half of them alleged insurgents. In July, Maoists killed at least 10 members of an elite Indian police force in the south of Bihar state.

Source: Sunday Times October 24, 2016 10:41 UTC