Six killed in Andhra Pradesh clashes

Police in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh say they have killed six suspected communist militants -- including two women -- in two separate incidents.

A spokesman said a police patrol shot dead four members of the outlawed People's War Group in a clash on the banks of the river Krishna.

Another two rebels were killed during a raid on a militant hide-out in the district of Prakasham.

The renewed violence follows the break-down of peace talks between the People's War Group and the state government, which decided last month to extend its ban on the organisation. The PWG has been waging an armed struggle for the creation of a communist state comprising the tribal areas of Andhra Pradesh, Mahrashtra, Orrissa, Bihar and Chattisgarh.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service