Police raid 'militant' Delhi hideout

The Red Fort was sealed off after the attack

Indian police say they have killed one man and captured another suspected of involvement in the militant attack on the historic Red Fort in Delhi last week.

The raid took place in the early hours of Tuesday morning in a residential area of the capital.

A police spokesman accused the two men of being members of a militant Kashmiri group that claimed responsibility for the attack on the Red Fort on Friday in which three people were killed.

The militant group, Lashkar-e-Toiba, has not confirmed that the men killed and captured in the raid are associated with them.

'Pakistanis'

Police said the two men were Pakistani nationals, according to local television reports. Reports named them as Abu Samal and Ashfaq Ahmed.

A police officer closes the door of the room where the raid took place

Star News said police had found guns and ammunition in the raid.

The militant attack on the Red Fort, one of Delhi's most famous monuments, came after India and Pakistan took steps to reduce tensions over the province of Kashmir.

India declared a unilateral ceasefire in November to coincide with the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, and recently extended the truce by another month.

Hardline Kashmiri separatist groups including Lashkar-e-Toiba dismissed the Indian action as a ploy.

The Indian Government said the Red Fort attack would not affect the ceasefire.

Manhunt

After the attack, more than 1,000 police were sent out to find the two gunmen.

The peace process will continue

Indian Home Minister LK Advani

The Indian Home Minister, LK Advani, insisted the government would not allow the peace process to be sabotaged.

"We are not going to be deterred by such acts, and the peace process will continue," he said.

High-profile target

There are few more prominent targets in India than the 17th-century Red Fort. Independence from Britain was proclaimed from its ramparts half a century ago.

The red sandstone fort not only houses a military garrison, but is also one of India's interrogation centres where hundreds of Muslim separatists have been questioned in the past.

Police say the gunmen entered the fort and killed a guard, an army barber and a soldier.

They then headed for the museum within the fort complex and opened fire at the guards and other people there.

Two wars

India and Pakistan have fought two wars over Kashmir, which is divided between them.

India extended its unilateral ceasefire

Militants launched an insurgency in 1989 aimed at separating the province from India. Some want independence, while others want majority-Muslim Kashmir to become part of Pakistan.

Estimates of the number of people killed in the struggle for Kashmir range from 30,000 to 60,000.

India and Pakistan have not held direct talks over the province since early 1999, when they broke off negotiations following fierce border clashes.