NEW DELHI – Indian police said they killed at least 12 Maoist rebels,including six women, in a raid Friday on a forested hideout in easternIndia.

Senior police officer D.M. Awasthy said police, acting on intelligence,raided the stronghold in Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh state.

He said police recovered 12 bodies and some arms and ammunition after anexchange of gunfire. The area is about 415 kilometers (260 miles) south ofRaipur, the state capital.

One police officer was killed in the joint operation by Chhattisgarh statepolice and the Greyhounds, a special police force in neighboring Telanganastate created to fight the rebels.

Those killed included a key Maoist leader, Haribhushan, the secretary ofthe outlawed Communist Party of India (Maoist) who has been trying tostrengthen the group in Telangana state, another police officer said.Agencies