Two Assam Rifles Soldiers Killed In Nagaland Ambush, Four Injured

Kohima: Two Assam Rifles personnel were killed and four others injured in an ambush by terrorists in Mon district of Nagaland on Sunday, an Assam Rifles official said. The National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN-K) has claimed responsibity for the attack.

The incident occurred around 3 pm near Aboi when armed terrorists ambushed a team comprising six Assam Rifles personnel, said the public relations officer to the Inspector General of Assam Rifles. Two units of Assam Rifles - one from Nagaland's Aboi and the other from Longding in neighbouring Arunachal Pradesh were on routine patrol. They had met at link point and were returning to their bases when one of the vehicles was attacked. The vehicle skidded off the road in the first  Improvised Explosive Device(IED) blast. Grenades were thrown and the gun fight last for close to 20 minutes.

Havildar Fateh Singh Negi and Sepoy Hungnga Konyak died on the spot while four others suffered critical bullet injuries, the officer said. The injured personnel were airlifted and taken to the military hospital at Jorhat in Upper Assam. 

The security men retaliated, but casualty on the other side was yet to be confirmed.

Last month, Home Ministry had alerted on escalation of attacks on security forces along the India-Myanmar border.

In 2015, eight Assam Rifles soldiers were killed in a similar attack by suspected NSCN(K) terrorists in the district.

(with PTI inputs)