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Indian army in

search operation

after rebels kill 12

GUWAHATI: The Indian army launched a massive search operation in the northeastern state of Manipur on Wednesday after separatist guerrillas shot and killed 12 people, nine of them policemen, police officials said.

Police Inspector-General Ngahanyui (one name) said the guerrillas ambushed a police convoy late on Tuesday near the Tronglow-Kanghphal area, about 45 km (25 miles) from the state capital of Imphal.

The guerrillas escaped with automatic weapons after killing the police, he told Reuters.

Ngahanyui said the police believed the rebels belonged to either the People's Liberation Army or the United National Liberation Front.

The heavily-wooded state of Manipur, which borders Burma, has in recent years been torn by a violent secessionist campaign and savage intertribal warfare.-Reuter